,.»""*" 


«*•" 


Sgraffito  Pie  Plate,  made  by  David  Spinner, 
Bucks  County,  Penna.,  about  1800. 

/•rem  the  collection  rn  the  Pennsylvania  Museum. 


Tulip  Ware 


Pennsylvania- German  Potters 


AN  HISTORICAL  SKETCH 

OF  THE  ART  OF  SLIP-DECORATION  IN 

THE  UNITED  STATES 

BY 

EDWIN  ATLEE    BARBER,  A.M.,   PH.D. 

CURATOR  AND  SI  i   RETARY  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  MUSEUM 
AND  SCHOOL  OF  INDUSTRIAL  ART 
PHILADEL 


Author  of 

"Pottery  and  Porcelain  of  the  United  Statics" 

"Anglo-American  Pottery  " 

"American  Glassware,  Old  and  New,"  etc. 


WITH    NEARLY    IOO    ILLUSTRATIONS 


PHILADELPHIA 

MCMIII    ' 


••• 


MUSCI.'OLO  /~7  P  PT. 

Only  joo  copies  pri?ited  on  large  paper 
of  which  this  is 

The  type  has  been  distributed 


Copyright,  1903,  by 

The  Pennsylvania  Museum  and  School  of 

Industrial  Art 

Philadelphia,     Pa. 


PREFACE 


The  existence  of  the  ancient  art  of  Slip-Decoration  in 
America  was  not  known  to  ceramic  students  until  the  year 
1891.  when  the  present  writer's  attention  was  first  attr;- 
to  the  subject,  while  gathering  material  for  "The  Pottery  and 
Porcelain  of  the  United  States,"  through  the  purchase  of  a  red 
earthenware  pie  plate.  This  piece,  embellished  with  floral 
and  bird  devices  in  the  sgraffito  style,  and  an  inscription  in 
German,  with  date  [826  (see  illustration  66),  was  at  first 
posed  to  be  an  example  of  European  workmanship,  but  care- 
ful examination  revealed  the  fact  that  some  of  the  words 
scratched  in  the  border  were  in  Pennsylvania  "Dutch." 
From  this  clew  a  series  of  investigations  was  instituted  which 
resulted  in  the  interesting  discovery  that  this  curious  art. 
which  had  been  brought  from  Germany,  was  flourishing  in 
Eastern  Pennsylvania  before  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth 
century. 

Through  the  liberality  of  Mr.  John  T.  Morris,  of  Phila- 
delphia, the  Pennsylvania  Museum  acquired  the  collection  of 
Pennsylvania-German  slip-decorated  ware  formed  by  the 
writer  for  the  purpose  of  illustrating  the  work  above  men- 
tioned. Around  this,  as  a  nucleus,  have  been  gathered  many 
additional  examples,  showing  the  best  work  of  the  old  Penn- 
sylvania-German potters.  This  collection  is  now  the  most 
representative  and  complete  of  its  kind  that  has  ever  been 
brought  together,  as  it  was  formed  before  other  investigators 
were  aware  that  slip-decorated  pottery  had  been  made  in  this 
country.  Many  of  these  pieces  were  procured  from  the  de- 
scendants of  the  makers,  and.  through  information  obtained 
from  their  recent  owners,  are  known  to  have  come  from 
particular  potteries. 

3 


756162 


4  PREFACE 

After  the  lapse  of  so  great  a  period  it  is  extremely  diffi- 
cult to  locate  the  old  pot-works,  which  have  long  since  dis- 
appeared. It  is  with  much  gratification,  therefore,  that  the 
writer,  after  ten  years  of  research  and  investigation,  is  en- 
abled to  give  some  account  of  at  least  a  few  of  the  old  estab- 
lishments where  the  ware  was  produced  and  to  fully  iden- 
tify many  of  the  best  pieces  in  the  collection. 

The  majority  of  the  illustrations  used  in  this  Handbook 
first  appeared  in  articles  contributed  by  the  writer  to  numer- 
ous periodicals,  and  in  each  instance  due  credit  is  given  in 
the  list  which  follows. 

The  author  desires  to  embrace  this  opportunity  to  ac- 
knowledge his  deep  obligations  to  Mr.  Thomas  B.  Deetz,  of 
Sellersville,  Pa.,  a  companion  in  many  a  search  through  the 
pottery  district,  whose  knowledge  of  the  local  dialect  was  a 
material  help  in  procuring  numerous  valuable  pieces  which 
otherwise  could  not  have  been  obtained;  to  Mr.  Charles  H. 
Deetz,  of  Washington,  D.  C,  and  Dr.  Julius  F.  Sachse,  of 
Philadelphia,  for  assistance  in  translating  some  of  the  more 
difficult  passages  in  the  Pennsylvania-German  inscriptions 
found  on  the  ware;  to  Hon.  Samuel  W.  Pennypacker,  now 
Governor  of  the  State,  and  Mr.  Frank  Ried  Diffenderffer,  of 
Lancaster,  Pa.,  for  information  relative  to  the  German  immi- 
gration into  Pennsylvania,  and  to  Mr.  A.  B.  Haring,  of 
Frenchtown,  N.  J.,  for  descriptions  of  the  processes  em- 
ployed by  the  old  potters. 

In  conclusion,  the  author  asks  that  where  discrepancies 
may  be  found  between  any  of  the  statements  contained  in  his 
earlier  contributions  on  this  subject  and  those  that  follow 
here,  in  the  descriptions  of  processes,  the  rendering  of  in- 
scriptions, or  the  recital  of  historical  facts,  the  reader  will 
accept  the  present  volume  as  the  final  result  of  these  investi- 
gations.  E  A   B 

March  I,  1903 


CONTENTS 


Page 

I.    The  Settlement  of  Eastern   Pennsylvania  by 

the  Germans u 

II.    The  Pennsylvania-German  Dialect  and  Litera- 
ture       19 

III.  Slip-Decoration  in  Europe  and  America 31 

IV.  Tools  and  r  ■■  ■    sses  of  Manufacture 45 

V.    Varieties  of  Slip  Ware 67 

VI.    Decorative  Subje<  rs  of  the  Pennsylvania-Ger- 
man  Potters  81 

\'I  [.     Tm:  Ti  1. ii'  in  I  >]  i  '  ik  VTION 

VIII.     Earthenware    Utensils   of    1111:    Pennsylvania 

Germans 99 

IX.     Slip  Potters  of  Eastern  Pennsylvania.    Eight- 
eenth Century 105 

X.     Slip  Potters  of  Eastern   Pennsylvania.     Early 

Nineteenth  Century 127 

XI.     Gift  Pieces 183 

XII.     Unidentified    Slit-Decorated    Ware    Found    in 

Pennsylvania  191 

XIII.  Miscellaneous  Inscriptions 207 

XIV.  Slip-Decoration  as  Practised  by  American  Pot- 

ters     215 


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I.     The  Settlement 

of  Eastern   Pennsylvania 

by  the  Germans 


CHAPTER  I. 

The    Settlement    of    Eastern    Pennsylvania    by 

Germans. 

As  early  as  1683  1  ierman  emigrants  from  the  Upper 
Rhine  and  the  Palatinate  began  to  arrive  in  Pennsylvania. 
Others  followed  in  1685,  """S'  1706,  and  in  [709  there  was  a 
large  emigration  from  Switzerland  to  Lancaster  county. 
Between  1717  and  1727  there  were  many  more  arrivals,  and 
from  that  time  on  for  fifty  years  the  exodus  from  the  father- 
land continued  in  an  ever  increasing  stream.  They  came 
principally  from  the  provinces  near  the  Rhine,  from  Hesse, 
Rhine  Palatinate,  Wurtemberg,  Baden,  from  Hesse  Nassau 
to  the  north,  from  Franconia  on  the  east  and  from  Switzer- 
land on  the  -outli.  Many  came  from  the  towns  of  Darmstadt, 
Mannheim  and  Durlach  on  the  east  of  the  Rhine,  and  from 
Worms  and  Kaiserslautern  to  the  west,  and  numerous 
other  places  along  the  upper  and  lower  valley  of  the  same 
river.  Hundreds  of  these  immigrants  settled  in  Philadelphia, 
Montgomery.  Bucks,  Northampton,  Lehigh,  Berks,  Schuyl- 
kill. Dauphin.  Lebanon,  Lancaster  and  York  counties, 
whence  they  gradually  eNtended  into  other  counties  and 
other  states.  Throughout  this  portion  of  southeastern 
Pennsylvania  they  have  left  their  impress  in  the  names  which 
they  gave  to  towns  and  townships,  such  as  Tulpehocken  from 
Tulpe  (Tulip)  and  Hocken  1  set  in  heaps),  Franconia.  Hanover. 

The  following  e.Ntracts  from  The  German  and  Swiss  Set- 
tlements of  Colonial  Pennsylvania,  by  Oscar  Kuhns.  will  "give 
a  general  view  of  the  streams  of  immigration  which  flowed 


12  TULIP  WARE 

into  Pennsylvania  between  the  years  1683  and  1775.  We 
m;.y  divide  this  period  into  three  parts:  First,  from  1683  to 
1 710,  or  from  the  founding  of  Germantown  to  the  coming  of 
(lie  Swiss  Mennonites;  second,  from  1710  to  1727,  the  year 
when  the  immigration  assumed  large  proportions  and  when 
official  statistics  began  to  be  published;  the  third  period  ex- 
tends to  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution,  which  put  an  end 
to  all  immigration  for  a  number  of  years.  During  the  first 
of  the  above  periods  the  numbers  were  very  small;  the  second 
period  marks  a  considerable  increase  in  numbers,  which  dur- 
ing the  third  period  swell  to  enormous  size     *     *     *." 

"The  second  period  begins  with  the  advent  of  the  Swiss 
Mennonites  in  1710  *  *  *.  About  this  very  time  began 
the  settlement  of  Lancaster  county  by  Swiss  Mennonites 
*  *  *.  In  the  archives  of  Amsterdam  we  find  a  letter  of 
thanks  to  Holland  written  by  Martin  Kiindig,  Hans  Herr, 
Christian  Herr,  Martin  Oberholtzer,  Martin  Meili  and  Jacob 
Miiller.  This  letter  was  dated  June  27,  1710,  and  states  that 
they  were  about  to  start  for  the  New  World.  October  23d 
of  the  same  year  we  find  a  patent  for  ten  thousand  acres  of 
land  on  Pequea  Creek,  Conestogoe  (later  a  part  of  Lancaster 
county,  which  was  not  organized  till  1729),  made  out  in  the 
names  of  Hans  Herr  and  Martin  Kiindig,  who  acted  as 
agents  of  their  countrymen,  some  of  whom  had  already  ar- 
rived, and  others  of  whom  were  to  come.  No  sooner  had 
these  first  settlers  become  established  than  Martin  Kiindig 
was  sent  back  to  Germany  and  Switzerland  to  bring  over 
those  who  wished  to  share  their  fortune  in  what  was  then  an 
impenetrable  forest,  but  is  now  known  as  the  garden-spot  of 
the  United  States,  Lancaster  county     *     *     *." 

"The  third  period,  which  we  shall  now  discuss,  is  marked 
by  the  fact  that  we  have  an  official  record  of  all  those  who 
entered  at  the  port  of  Philadelphia.  We  have  seen  that  in 
1 71 7  the  large  influx  of  foreigners  excited  serious  alarm. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  13 

This  alarm  was  excited  anew  with  the  renewal  of  large  ar- 
rivals, and  on  October  14.  1727,  the  Provincial  Council 
adopted  a  resolution  to  the  effect  that  all  masters  of  vessels 
importing  Germans  and  other  foreigners  should  prepare  a 
list  of  such  persons,  their  occupations,  and  place  whence  they 
came,  and  further  that  the  said  foreigners  should  sign  a  d 
laration  of  allegiance  and  subjection  to  the  king  of  Great 
Britain,  and  of  fidelity  to  the  Proprietary  of  Pennsylvania. 
The  first  oath  was  taken  in  the  court-house  at  Philadelphia, 
September  21,  1727,  by  109  Palatines. 

"The  above-mentioned  lists  contain  the  names  of  the 
vessels  and  their  captains,  the  port  from  which  they  last 
sailed,  and  the  date  of  arrival  in  Philadelphia.  They  also 
give  in  many  cases  (he  native  country  of  the  voyagers,  not, 
however,  with  much  detail,  or  so  constantly  as  we  could  wish 

*  *  *.  On  September  1  _'.  1734,  one  ship's  company  of  263 
is  composed  of  Schwenckfelders.  In  [735  we  find  Palatines 
and  Switzers,  and   on   August   20th,   Switzers   from    Heme. 

*  *  *  The  lists  for  1749  and  1754  are  especially  full  in 
this  respect,  and  under  date  of  the  arrival  of  each  ship  the 
fatherland  of  the  new  arrivals  is  given  variously  as  Wurtem- 
berg,  Erbach,  Alsace,  Zweibriicken,  the  Palatinate,  Nassau, 
Hanau,  Darmstadt,  Basel,  Mannheim.  Mentz,  Westphalia, 
Hesse,  Switzerland,  and,  once  only,  Hamburg,  Hannover 
and  Saxony     *     *     *." 

"The  earliest  arrivals  of  the  people  with  whom  we  have 
to  do  in  this  book  remained  in  Germantown,  Philadelphia, 
or  the  immediate  vicinity.  Shortly  after  the  beginning  of 
the  new  century  they  began  to  penetrate  the  dense  forests 
which  then  covered  the  present  counties  of  Montgomery, 
Lancaster  and  Berks.  As  the  lands  nearest  to  Philadelphia 
became  gradually  taken  up,  the  settlers  were  forced  to  make 
their  way  further  and  further  to  the  West.  When  no  more 
lands  remained  on  this  side  of  the  Susquehanna,  the  Ger- 


14  TULIP  WARE 

mans  crossed  the  river  and  founded  the  counties  of  York  and 
Cumberland.  Still  later  they  spread  over  Northampton, 
Dauphin,  Lehigh,  Lebanon  and  the  other  counties,  while 
toward  the  end  of  the  century  the  tide  of  colonization  swept 
to  the  South  and  the  newly  opened  West." 

An  examination  of  the  official  records  relating  to  the 
third  period  (after  1727),  to  which  reference  is  made  above, 
reveals  the  fact  that  many  of  the  arrivals  bore  the  same  sur- 
names as  those  who  at  a  later  date  were  operating  potteries 
in  some  of  the  southeastern  counties  of  the  state.  For  in- 
stance, on  September  11,  1728.  a  list  was  presented  of  the 
names  of  forty-two  Palatines  who,  with  their  families,  were 
imported  here  in  the  ship  "James  Goodwill."  from  Rotter- 
dam, but  last  from  Deal,  as  by  clearance  from  the  officers  of 
the  customs  there,  bearing  date  the  15th  day  of  June,  1728. 
In  this  list  is  found  the  name  of  Frederick  Sholl,  in  all  prob- 
ability an  ancestor  of  Michael  and  Jacob  Scholl,  who,  as  we 
shall  see,  were  potters  in  Montgomery  county  about  the  be- 
ginning of  the  following  century.  In  the  lists  of  arrivals  for 
the  year  1730,  we  find  the  name  of  Rudolph  Draugh,  evi- 
dently a  progenitor  of  the  Rudolf  Drach  who  was  potting  in 
Bucks  county  sixty  years  later.  In  1731  came  six  members 
of  the  Nehs  family,  and  in  1733  Johannes  Naiis,  to  which 
stock  Johannes  Neesz  (afterwards  written  Xase)  probably  be- 
longed, whose  pottery  was  in  operation  in  Montgomery 
county  after  the  opening  of  the  nineteenth  century  In  the 
last-named  vear  Peter  Drochsel's  name  appears  on  the  list  of 
the  ship  "Samuel,"  from  Rotterdam,  and  it  is  reasonable  to 
suppose  that  Samuel  Troxel,  the  Montgomery  county  potter 
of  sixty  years  later,  was  one  of  his  descendants.  George 
Heibner,  who  reached  Philadelphia  in  1734,  was  in  all  prob- 
ability the  grandfather  of  Georg  Hiibener,  who  was  en- 
gaged in  the  manufacture  of  earthenware  some  fifty  years 
afterwards. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  15 

The  following  observations  on  The  German  Immigration 
into  Pennsylvania,  by  Frank  Ried  Diffenderffer,*  arc  of 
interest: 

"While  this  German  immigration  was  considerable  in 
some  years  prior  to  1727,  it  was  irregular  and  seemingly  spas- 
modic. Apparently  it  was  gathering  strength  and  emu 
for  the  half  century  of  irrepressible  exodus  which  was  to  fol- 
low. In  the  fall  of  1727,  five  ships  laden  with  German  immi- 
grants reached  the  wharves  of   Philadelphia 

"Trior  to  1741  all  the  Germans  who  came  to  Pennsyl- 
vania were  called  Palatines  on  the  ship  lists,  irrespi 
the  place  of  their  nativity.  Subsequent  to  that  time.  It 
ever,the  terms  'Foreigners. ''inhabitants  of  the  Palatinate  and 
places  adjacent'  were  applied  to  them.  Still  later,  after  1754. 
the  German  principalities  from  which  they  came  are  not 
mentioned     *     *     :  ." 

"The  inflowing  tide  of  German  immigrants  to  the  Prov- 
ince of  Pennsylvania,  through  the  port  of  Philadelphia,  is  not 
secondary  in  importance  to  the  coming  of  William  Penn  him- 
self and  the  establishment  of  his  Government  on  the  banks  of 
the  Delaware.  Considered  in  its  historic  hearings,  it  is  not 
only  one  of  the  most  noteworthy  events  associated  with  the 
colonization  of  America,  but  is  besides  invested  with  a  more 
special  interest,  all  its  own.  of  which  I  shall  attempt  to  give 
the  more  important  details. 

"The  first  Germans  to  come  to  America,  as  colonists  in 
Pennsylvania,  were,  as  a  rule,  well  to  do.  Nearly  all  of  them 
in  the  beginning  of  that  mighty  exodus  had  sufficient  means 
to  pay  all  the  charges  incurred  in  going  down  the  Rhine  to 
the  sea,  and  enough  besides  to  meet  the  expenses  for  carry- 
ing them  across  the  ocean,  and  yet  have  some  left  when  they 
arrived  to  pay  for  part  or  all  of  the  lands  they  took  up.    The 


'Published  at  Lancaster,  Pa..  1900. 


1 6  TULIP  WARE 

large  tracts  taken  up  by  the  colony  at  Germantown  and  at 
Conestoga  are  all-sufficient  evidence  of  this.  And  this  con- 
tinued to  be  the  rule  until  about  171 7,  and  perhaps  later, 
when  the  great  exodus  from  the  Palatinate  set  in.  Then  the 
real  race  to  reach  the  New  World  began.  The  poorer  classes 
had  not  been  unobservant  of  what  was  going  on.  If  America 
was  a  place  where  the  rich  could  become  richer  still,  surely  it 
must  be  a  place  where  the  poor  also  might  better  themselves. 
At  all  events,  nothing  could  be  lost  by  going,  because  they 
had  the  merest  pittance  to  begin  with.  Besides,  all  the  ac- 
counts were  favorable.  Those  already  in  Pennsylvania  sent 
back  glowing  descriptions  of  the  ease  with  which  land  could 
be  acquired,  the  productiveness  of  the  soil,  the  abundance  of 
food,  the  freedom  from  taxation  and  the  equality  of  all  men 
before  the  law  to  their  natural  rights  and  their  religious 
creeds." 

This,  in  brief,  is  the  history  of  the  German  settlement  of 
eastern  Pennsylvania.  The  Swiss  element,  speaking  largely 
the  same  language,  became  amalgamated  with  the  German, 
which  preponderated,  forming  a  homogeneous  people  who 
are  to-day  known  as  the  "Pennsylvania  Dutch." 


II.    The  Pennsylvania-German 

Dialect  and  Literature 


CHAPTER  II. 
The  Pennsylvania-German    Dialeci    and   Literature. 

The  distinguished  philologist,  the  late  Professor  Samuel 
Stehman  Haldeman,  who  made  a  thorough  stud)  of  the 
Pennsylvania-German  tongue,  described  it  as  a  legitimate 
South-German  dialect  with  an  element  of  English,  and  not. 

popularly  supposed,  a  corrupt  form  of  the  German  lan- 
guage as  developed  in  America. 

Another  authority  on  this  subject,  the  late  Dr.  Walter  J. 
Hoffman,  in  a  contribution  to  the  American  Philosophical 
Society, *  says: 

'Mi  is  well  known  that  the  early  German  colonists  repre- 
sented almost  every  dialectic  subdivision  of  the  states  now 
embraced  within  the  empires  of  Germany  and  Austro-Hun- 
gary,  hut  as  the  immigrants  from  the  Rhenish  Palatinate 
were  in  excess,  the  present  linguistic  residuum  partakes  n 
of  the  characteristics  of  the  Pfalz  dialects  than  those  of  an) 
other.  This  fact  was  most  forcibly  brought  to  the  writer's 
attention  during  the  period  of  his  services  as  Staff  Surgeon 
in  the  Prussian  army,  in  1870-71,  at  which  time  opportunities 
for  practical  comparison  occurred  almost  daily. 

"The  chief  difference  between  the  Pennsylvania  dialect 
and  those  of  the  Rhenish  Palatinate  lies  in  the  fact  that  the 
former  is  characterized  by  the  abundance  of  nasalized  ter- 
minal vowel  sounds,  brought  about  by  the  almost  unvarying 


*Grammatic    Notes    and   Vocabulary    of  the    Pennsylvania-German 
Dialect.    Proceedings  of  the   Am.  Phil.  Soc.  Vol.  XXVI.  Xo.  i-'Q.  1889. 

19 


20  TULIP  WARE 

rule  of  dropping  the  final  n  of  German  words  ending  in  en 
and  cin     *     *     *." 

"It  is  extremely  difficult  for  the  people  in  the  rural  dis- 
tricts, who  are  not  familiar  with  the  English  language,  to  ac- 
quire the  correct  sound  of  /  as  in  James,  and  of  g  as  in  gem; 
the  result  is  tsh  or  ch  as  in  chain;  words,  on  the  contrary,  be- 
ginning with  ch,  as  in  Charles,  are  pronounced  like  ;',  as  in 
jar. 

"The  final  th  usually  becomes  s,  while  the  same  sound 
as  an  initial  one  becomes  d;  this  applies  to  English  words, 
incorporated  with  the  Pennsylvania-German. 

"Both  German  and  English  words  commencing  with 
si,  si,  sw,  sm,  sn,  sp,  etc.,  are  pronounced  as  if  written  with 
sh,  the  h  being  inserted  between  the  first  two  consonants, 
e.  g.,  stein  =  shtcn;  slow=  shlo;  small  =  shmal." 

The  same  writer,  in  a  paper  published  in  the  Journal  of 
American  Folk-Lore,  states  that  "as  pronounced  and  spoken 
by  the  country  folk,  the  dialect  is  frequently  very  amusing  to 
those  speaking  it  in  the  cities,  as  the  former  have  a  peculiar 
drawl  or  prolonged  intonation  not  often  heard  in  business 
communities,  where  everything  is  done  with  promptness  and 
despatch.  There  are  marked  differences,  too,  in  words  and 
phrases,  so  that  one  who  is  familiar  with  the  dialect  can  read- 
ily distinguish  whether  the  speaker  be  from  Lancaster,  or 
Berks,  or  Lehigh  county." 

The  inhabitants  of  certain  remote  parts  of  Germany  have 
less  difficulty  in  understanding  the  Pennsylvania-German 
than  those  nearer  the  Prussian  capital.  Mr.  Jacob  Geismar, 
a  native  of  Wiesbaden,  but  now  a  resident  of  Philadelphia, 
informs  me  that  he  has  frequently  conversed  with  the  people 
of  Montgomery  and  Bucks  counties,  and  that  their  dialect, 
eliminating  the  introduced  English  or  anglicized  words,  is 
practically  the  same  as  that  spoken  to-day  along  the  Rhine. 
Many  of  the  German  families  of  southeastern  Pennsylvania 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM.  IX S  21 

came  from  Rhenish  Hesse  and  Rhenish  Bavaria  (Rhine 
Hesscn  and  Rhine  Bavaria),  where  some  of  the  same  sur- 
names are  yet  found,  such  as  Leidy,  Hiestand  and  Stauffer. 

A  book  of  poems,  by  Karl  ( i.  Nadler,  published  at  Lahr, 
Germany,  in  1880,  entitled  "Frohlich  Pah.  Gott  erhalts"  (Joy- 
ous Palatinate,  (  iod  protect  it),  furnishes  an  excellent  exam- 
ple of  the  Palatine  dialect,  which  is  found  to  hear  consider- 
able resemblance  to  the  Pennsylvania-German,  as  spoken  by 
the  better  class. 

When  written,  the  language  of  this  section  of  Pennsyl- 
vania is  generally  a  purer  German  than  that  which  is  usually 
spoken  by  the  people  in  ordinary  conversation.  Hence  the 
inscriptions  found  on  their  pottery,  if  allowance  be  made  for 
the  defective  orthography,  more  closely  resemble  the  high 
German  than  their  own  spoken  idiom.  It  must  he  remem- 
bered that  the  education  of  the  average  potter  of  this  district 
was  exceedingly  limited,  so  that  in  transferring  the  senti- 
ments he  had  in  mind  to  his  wares,  his  spelling  was  likely  to 
be  largely  phonetic.    Thus  in  the  >ld  saws  and  motfc 

employed  by  different  workmen  the  manner  of  writing  the 
words  differed  considerably,  and,  in  fact,  the  same  decorator 
not  infrequently  had  a  variety  of  ways  for  spelling  the  same 
words.  For  this  reason  it  is  frequently  difficult  to  translate 
the  ceramic  inscriptions,  so  that  it  often  becomes  necessary 
to  first  study  the  sound  of  certain  words  as  written  before  we 
can  intelligently  search  for  their  equivalents  in  good  Ger- 
man. In  the  majority  of  Pennsylvania-German  words  the 
original  root  has  been  preserved,  and  while  they  may  not  be 
readily  recognized  by  the  eye,  a  phonetic  pronunciation  will 
often  suggest  to  the  ear  of  a  German  scholar  the  idea  which 
was  intended  to  be  conveyed.  A  fair  illustration  of  varied 
orthography  is  found  in  the  word  richtig,  which  is  also  written 
richdig  and  richtich;  in  crd,  erde,  crt.  chrt  or  brde,  and  in 
madchen,  madcher  or  met  per. 


22  TULIP  WARE 

The  difference  between  the  local  dialect  as  written  and 
spoken  by  the  Pennsylvania  Germans  will  be  apparent  in  the 
double  rendering  of  the  following  proverbs,  which  are  quoted 
by  Dr.  Hoffman: 

Written :     "Leben  und  leben  lassen." 
Spoken  :     "Mer  mus  lewa  un  lossa  lewa." 
Translation :     Live  and  let  live. 

Written  :     "Er  nemmt  den  Stier  bei  den  Hornern." 
Spoken:     "Ar  nemt  der  hull  bai  da  harner." 
Translation :     He  takes  the  bull  by  the  horns. 

Written:     "Neua  Besen  kehren  sauber." 
Spoken:     "Naia  besa  kara  gut." 
Translation  :     Xew  brooms  sweep  clean. 

Written :     "Eine  blinde  Sau  findet  audi  alzemal  eine  Echol." 
Spoken :     "En  blindti  sau  findt  a  alsamol  'n  echel." 
Translation  :     Even  a  blind  hog  finds  an  acorn  once  in  a  while. 

Written :     "Wenn  ich  Geld  hab  geh  ich  ins  Wirthshaus  ; 

Wenn  ich  keins  hab  bleib  ich  draus." 
Spoken  :     "Wan  ich  Geklt  hab  geh  ich  ins  Wartshaus  : 

Wan  ich  kens  hab  blai-wich  draus." 
Translation  :     When  I  have  money  I  go  into  the  tavern  ; 
When  I  have  none  I  stay  outside. 

The  following  passages,  quoted  from  a  little  volume,  en- 
titled Gemalde  ans  dem  Pennsylvanischen  Volksleben,  by  L.  A. 
Wollenweber,  will  perhaps  convey  even  a  better  idea  of  the 
peculiarities  of  the  provincial  idiom,  as  it  obtains  in  eastern 
Pennsylvania.  In  a  description  of  winter,  with  its  pastimes 
and  enjoyments,  he  writes: 

"Dann  kommts  Schlittefahre,  wie  gehts  do  net  manch- 
mol  drunner  un  driiwer,  un  wie  gehts  do  ans  Esse  un  Trinke, 
partikular  hinter  die  Minz-  un  Pot-pays. — Un  gar's  jung 
Volk!  wie  geht  das  an. — Do  ischts  G'wilde,  's  Appelbutter- 
koche,  's  Schlittefahre,  's  Fralike  un's  Sparke,  ohne  End." 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  23 

Then  comes  sleigh  riding,  bumpity-bump,  and  how  they 

eat  and  drink,  particularly  mince  and  pot-pies.  And  then  the 
young  people,  how  they  carry  on.  There  is  quilting,  apple- 
butter  cooking,  sleigh  riding,  frolicking  and  courting  with- 
out end. 

A  laudatory  poem,  on  Pennsylvania,  by  the  same  writer, 
commences  thus: 

"Ich  bin  e  Pennsylvanier 
I  I'ruff  bin  ich  stolz  un  fr 
Das  land  isl  scho,  die  Leut  tin  nett 
Bei  Tschinks!    ich  mach'  schier  en'ge  VVett, 
'S  biets  ke'  Land  der  Welt." 

I  am  a  Pennsylvanian, 
1  if  which  1  am  proud  and  glad. 
The  land  is  beautiful,  the  pi 
By  Jinks!   1  am  willing  to  waj 
it  no  land  in  the  world  beats  it. 

The  expletive  used  in  the  fourth  line  of  the  a  anza 

is,  of  course,  of  American  origin,  but  is  now  a  common  ex- 
pression in  the  Pennsylvania-German  settlements.  The  inter- 
rogative term  "Gel,"  which  corresponds  with  our  ungram- 
matical  expression  "ain't  it."  is   1  nerally  used. 

A  recent  writer*  thus  lucidly  describes  some  of  the  pecu- 
liarities of  this  curious  dialect: 

"Among  the  many  interesting  phenomena  connected 
with  the  Pennsylvania  Germans  none  is  more  striking  than 
their  persistence  in  clinging  to  their  dialect.  Here  we  have 
a  group  of  people  living  in  the  very  heart  of  the  United 
States,  surrounded  on  all  sides  by  English-speaking  people, 
almost  every  family  having  some  of  its  branches  thoroughly 
mixed  by  intermarriage  with  these  people,  yet  still  after 
the  lapse  of  nearly  two  hundred  years  retaining  to  a  con- 


*Oscar  Kuhns,  in  The  German  and  Swiss  Settlements  of  Colonial  Penn- 
sylvania, p.  115,  et  seq. 


24  TULIP  WARE 

siderable  degree  the  language  of  their  ancestors.  Even  in 
large  and  flourishing  cities  like  Allentown,  Reading  and 
Bethlehem  much  of  the  intercourse  in  business  and  home- 
life  is  carried  on  in  this  patois.     *     *     *" 

"The  vernacular  thus  religiously  preserved  was  not  the 
literary  language  of  Germany,  but  a  distinct  dialect.  We 
have  seen  that  the  vast  majority  of  emigrants  to  Pennsyl- 
vania during  the  last  century  came  from  the  various  states 
of  South  Germany;  the  three  principal  ones  which  furnished 
settlers  being  the  Palatinate,  Wurtemberg  and  Switzerland. 
The  inhabitants  of  these  three  form  two  ethnical  entities  which 
are  more  or  less  closely  allied,  Wurtemberg  and  Switzerland 
being  practically  pure  Alemannic,  while  the  Palatinate  is 
Frankish,  with  a  strong  infusion  of  Alemannic  blood  in  cer- 
tain parts  thereof.  Hence  it  follows  that  the  Pennsylvania- 
German  dialect  is  a  mixture  of  Frankish  and  Alemannic.  Of 
course,  there  are  subdivisions  in  these  dialects,  the  Swabian 
of  Wurtemberg  being  different  from  that  of  Switzerland,  and 
the  mixed  speech  of  the  Palatinate  different  from  both.  The 
Pennsylvania-German,  then,  has  as  a  basis  certain  charac- 
teristics derived  from  all  these  dialects,  modified  and  har- 
monized, many  of  the  original  differences  having  in  course  of 
time  been  so  transformed  that  to-day  the  dialect  is  in  general 
homogeneous.     *     *     *" 

"But  that  which  stamps  it  with  especial  peculiarity  are 
the  changes  it  has  undergone  under  the  influence  of  English. 
It  was  only  natural  that,  coming  to  a  strange  land,  surrounded 
by  people  speaking  another  language,  the  Germans  should 
borrow  new  words,  especially  such  as  expressed  things  and 
ideas  which  were  new  to  them.  These  words  were  either  very 
familiar  or  technical,  things  they  had  to  buy  and  sell,  objects 
of  the  experiences  of  daily  life,  such  as  stohr.  boggy,  fens, 
endorse,  etc.  The  newspapers  abound  in  curious  compounds 
like  eisenstot'e,  kuchenranges,  parlor-oefen,  carving-messer,  sat- 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  25 

tler-hartwaaren,   gauls-blankets   (horse-blankets),    frahm-som- 

iiicrhaiis,  flauer-barrel,  etc.  Many  of  these  importations  are 
taken  without  much  change,  as  office,  operate,  schquier,  etc. 
Many,  however,  are  hybrid  words,  some  with  German  prefix 
and   English   root   (abstarte  =  start   0  eine-  sign    away. 

auspicke  =  pick  out,  ansteire —tire  out,  ferboddcre  =  bother) ; 
others  with  English  root  and  German  suffix  Qiickemiss  = 
hickory-nuts,  krickli  —  little  creek);  still  more  curious  is  the 
expression  of  the  English  idea  in  German  (gutgucklich  = 
good-looking,  hemgemacht  =  home-made)." 

The  more  recent  literature,  of  a  popular  nature,  such  as 
appears  in  the  local  newspapers,  is  written  phonetically  in  the 
dialect  as  it  is  now  spoken  in  the  rural  districts.  The  follow- 
ing stanza  from  a  poem,  entitled  "Die  .Utc  Zeite"  (The  Olden 
Times),  by  II.  L.  Fischer,  of  York,  Pa.,*  throws  a  side- 
light on  the  home  life  of  the  people  at  a  time  when  the  old 
slip-decorated  pottery  had  been  superseded  by  pewter  ware 
and  the  more  modern  imported  English  china  with  its  blue 
printed  designs: 

"Ich  wees  noch  fon  de'  alte  Deller, 

Ich  meen  ich  seen  sic  do; 
M'r  hen'n  alter  Eck-Schank  g'hat, 
Foil  Dische-g'scherr,  ton  alte  Si  in, 

Foil  Bilder,-Himmel's-blo ; 
Ich  kan  sie  nimmermehr  f'rgessi  . 
Die  Bilder  un  des  herrlich  Esse."' 

"I  still  remember  the  old  plan 

I  think  I  see  them  yet ; 
\Ye  had  an  old  corner-cupboard 
Full  of  the  old  kind  of  tableware, 

With  sky-blue  pictures ; 
I  can  never  forget 
The  pictures  and  the  pleasant  meal." 


*See  the  Pennsylvania-German  Manual,  by  A.  R.  Home,  A.M.,  D.D..  p.  no. 


26  TULIP  WARE 

The  meager  literature  of  the  Palatines  of  Pennsylvania 
in  the  eighteenth  and  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
turies was  of  a  devotional  character,  and  was  printed  in  liter- 
ary German.  Their  poetical  compositions  were  in  the  form 
of  hymns  and  their  prose  works  consisted  of  books  and  pam- 
phlets of  a  theological  or  religious  nature.  The  first  of  these 
to  appear  in  Pennsylvania,  as  stated  by  Kuhns,  was  Conrad 
Beissel's  Biichlein  vom  Sabbath,  which  was  printed  by  Andrew 
Bradford  in  1728,  "which,  in  the  words  of  the  Chronicon 
Ephratense,  "led  to  the  public  adoption  of  the  seventh  day  for 
divine  service.'  '  Among  the  most  remarkable  achieve- 
ments of  that  period  was  the  translation  into  German  of 
Van  Bragt's  Blutige  Schauplatz  oder  Martyrer  Spiegel,  or  Mar- 
tyr Book,  as  it  is  commonly  called,  which  was  printed  from 
hand-made  type,  the  entire  work,  including  the  binding, 
being  done  by  members  of  the  Ephrata  Community  of  Lan- 
caster county,  taking  "fifteen  men  three  years  to  complete 
the  task,  the  first  part  being  published  in  1748,  the  second  in 

1749."* 

It  was  not  until  the  latter  part  of  the  nineteenth  century 
that  dialect  literature  of  a  lighter  character  began  to  be 
printed.  Among  the  foremost  writers  in  the  vernacular  was 
the  Rev.  Henry  Harbaugh,  whose  poems  of  home  life  soon 
attained  a  widespread  popularity  among  the  people.  From 
one  of  these,  entitled  "Das  alt  Schulhaus  an  der  Krick"  (The 
Old  School  House  on  the  Creek),  the  following  stanzas  are 
quoted: 

"Do  bin  ich  gange  in  die  Schul, 
Wo  ich  noch  war  gans  klee' ; 
Dort  war  der  Meeschter  in  seim  Schtuhl, 
Dort  war  sei'  Wip,  un  dort  sei'  Ruhl, — 
Ich  kann's  noch  Alles  seh'. 


*Ib.  p.  133. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  27 

"Die  lange  Desks  rings  an  der  Wand — 
I  >ie  hieler  drum  : 

Uf  eener  Seit  die  grose  Mad, 
Un  dort  die  Buw<  m  1  s<  1  bleed — 

<  ink,  vvie  sic  piepe  rum !" 

""I'was  here  I  firsl  atti  nd<  '1  school, 
When  1  was  very  small  ; 
There  was  the  Master  on  h 

re  was  his  whip  and  there  his  rule. — 
1  seem  to  see  it  all. 

"The  Ii  mg  desks  r;  1  ng  the  w  ; 

\\  itli  books  and  inkstands  crowm 
1  [ere  on  this  side  the  larg  it, 

\nd  there  the  trick;.  1  that — 

See,  how  they  peep  an  mud  !" 

Another  method  of  transmitting  ideas,  however,  was 
resorted  to  for  the  amusement  of  the  common  people,  in  the 
absence  of  a  popular  literature  during  the  eighteenth  century, 
which  seems  to  have  been  entirely  overlooked  by  histori 
This  may  be  termed  their  ceramic  literature.  By  the  union 
"t  expressive  pictographs  and  inscribed  wools,  the  worker. 
in  clay  recorded  the  customs  of  thj  e,  much  of  their 

folk-lore  and  their  artistic  progress.  By  mean-  of  these  ce- 
ramic inscriptions  they  preserved  many  of  the  1  man 
sayings  or  sprichworter,  which  otherwise  would  have  been 
forgotten. 

They  adhered  closely  to  the  traditions  of  an  art  which 
had  flourished  in  the  fatherland  for  centuries,  using  the  same 
time-honored  methods  and  decorative  motives  in  this,  their 
adopted  land,  as  had  been  employed  by  their  forefathers  for 
generations.  As  they  were  practically  isolated  from  other 
peoples  in  the  community  which  they  established,  no  extra- 
neous influences  penetrated  to  modify  their  homely  but  virile 
art.  And  on  their  earthen  wares  they  inscribed,  in  the  dialect 
of  the  people,  the  homely  proverbs  and  mottoes  and  rude 


28  TULIP  WARE 

rhymes,  quotations  from  the  Bible  and  lines  from  old  German 
hymns,  which  had  ornamented  the  coarse  pottery  of  their 
ancestors.  By  means  of  these  ceramic  inscriptions  and  their 
accompanying  decorative  devices,  many  of  which  have  sur- 
vived, we  may  trace  the  successive  stages  in  the  evolution  of 
the  artistic  instinct  and  the  gradual  improvements  in  the 
surroundings  of  the  people,  in  their  household  decoration  and 
their  floriculture.  Through  a  study  of  these  tracings  and 
etchings  on  the  old  pie  plates  and  dishes  we  learn  much  of 
their  customs,  of  the  various  animals  which  they  raised,  of  the 
flowers  which  they  cultivated  and  the  costumes  which  were  in 
vogue  a  century  and  a  half  ago.  In  their  inscriptions  we  can 
read  the  homely  philosophy  of  the  people  and  gain  some 
knowledge  of  their  mental  traits,  and  in  them  we  can  trace 
the  gradual  changes  which  have  taken  place  in  the  language 
since  they  left  the  country  of  their  forefathers.  It  is  by  means 
of  this  ceramic  literature  that  we  are  enabled  to  obtain 
glimpses  of  many  interesting  facts  in  the  lives  of  this  people 
that  have  not  been  recorded  elsewhere. 


]II.    Slip-Decoration  in  Europe 
and  America 

In  England — Probably  brought  from  Persia — 

In  Germany — France — Points  of  Difference  between  the 

I  ngflish  and  American  Processes 


CHAPTER   III. 
Slip  Decoration  in  Europe  and  Amerk 

The   rudely   ornamented   pottery   of  civilized   nations, 
which  for  two  centuries  or  more  preceded  the  manufacture 
of  porcelain,  possesses  a   peculiar  fascination   for  colled 
and  students  of  the  ceramic  art.  on  account  of  the  boldness 
of  its  decorative  treatment  and  its  quality  of  manly   vi 
It  shows  the  first  awakening  of  the  artistic  instinct  am 
simple-hearted  people,  who.  in  their  engrossing  -  for 

subsistence,  had  little  opportunity  for  improving  their  sur- 
roundings. 

Among-  the  earliest  ornamented  earthenware  of  Europe 
was  that  which  is  known  as  slip-decorated  ware,  which  was 
of  two  varieties, — slip-traced  or  slip-painted,  and  slip-engraved, 
scratched  or  sgraffito.  Slip-tracing  consists  in  trickling 
liquid  clay  or  slip  through  a  quill,  which  is  attached  to  a 
little  cup.  over  the  surface  of  the  unburned  ware  to  produce 
the  decorative  designs,  the  slips  being  of  the  consistence  of 
thick  cream  or  hatter  of  a  lighter  tint  than  the  coarse  clay 
to  which  it  is  applied,  which  latter  is  generally  of  a  dark 
orange  or  red  color.  Slip-engraving  consists  in  covering  the 
ware  completely  with  a  thin  coating  or  engobe  of  slip. 
through  which  the  ornamental  devices  are  scratched  with  a 
pointed  instrument,  to  show  the  darker  clay  beneath.  In  a 
general  way  it  may  be  said  that  true  slip-decoration  is  usually 
distinguished  by  light-colored  ornamentation  on  a  darker 
ground,  while  sgraffito  work  is  characterized  by  dark  de- 
signs in  a  white  or  yellowish  field.      In  the  former  variety 

31 


$2  TULIP  WARE 

the  decorations  generally  appear  in  slight  relief,  in  the  latter 
they  are  depressed  or  intaglioed. 

Mr.  M.  L.  Solon,  in  his  Art  of  the  Old  English  Potter, 
states  that  slip-decorated  ware  was  made  by  the  Romans, 
and  at  a  later  date  this  simple  method  of  ornamentation 
was  practised  in  France,  Switzerland  and  Germany.  It  does 
not  appear  to  have  been  employed  by  the  English  potters 
to  any  extent  prior  to  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury. Much  of  the  pottery  made  before  that  period,  which 
by  some  authors  has  been  improperly  classed  with  slip-traced 
ware,  was  embellished  with  applied  moldings  of  yellow  clay, 
and  was  therefore  an  entirely  distinct  product.  Wrotham 
in  Kent  seems  to  have  produced  the  earliest  dated  examples 
of  slip  ware  found  in  England*  and  soon  afterwards  numer- 
ous Staffordshire  potters  were  engaged  in  its  production, 
foremost  among  whom  were  Thomas  and  Ralph  Toft,  some 
of  whose  pieces  bear  dates  as  early  as  1676  and  1677.  In 
England  the  first  described  method  was  usually  practised, 
while  scratched  decoration  was  resorted  to  more  rarely. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  sgraffito  style  was  more  extensively 
employed  in  Italy,  and  predominated  in  the  wares  of  the 
German,  Swiss  and  French  potters,  who  afterwards  adopted 
it.  The  oldest  piece  of  English  sgraffito  ware  known  is 
dated  1670. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  on  many  of  the  early  Eng- 
lish slip-traced  and  scratched  pieces  the  principal  decorative 
motive  is  the  tulip,  which  fact  suggests  the  possibility  that 
the  art  of  slip-decoration  was  introduced  into  England  from 
Germany,  for  the  use  of  this  flower  in  ceramic  embellishment 
probably  originated  in  Persia  and  later  spread  to  Continental 
Europe. 

♦Several  pieces  which  appear  to  be  true  slip  ware,  bearing  dates  some- 
what antedating  1650,  are  figured  in  "Examples  of  Early  English  Pottery, 
Named,  Dated  and  Inscribed,"  by  John  Eliot  Hodgkin  and  Edith  Hodgkin, 
London,  1891. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  3s 

According  to  Jacquemart,*  "iri  the  Persian  language 
the  tulip  is  the  symbol  of  love.  Chardin  reports  having 
seen  in  the  king's  palace  at  Ispahan,  a  vase  decorated  with 
that  flower  and  hearing  the  following  inscription:  '1  have 
taken  the  tulip  for  my  emblem;  like  it,  I  have  a  countenance 
<>f  lire  and  a  heart  of  coal.' 


1.     EXAMPLE  OF  OLD   ENGLISH   SLIP-DECORATION. 

Queen   Elizabeth  and  the   Earl  of  Leicester. 

In  the  Nottingham  Art  Museum,  England. 

"At  the  festival  of  tulips  the  most  curious  varieties 
are  shown  in  the  interior  of  the  harem." 

Much  of  the  Persian  faience,  from  the  sixteenth  centurv 
to  the  present,  is  embellished  with  paintings  of  this  flower, 
in  various  colors,  red,  blue,  green.     These  representations 


*Histoirc  de  la  Ccramique,  Pari?,  1875,  page  135. 


34 


TULIP  WARE 


are  lifelike  and  unmistakable,  the  petals  being  usually 
fringed,  or  terminating  in  long  points,  less  open  or  expanded 
than  the  slip-traced  tulips  of  the  German  and  English  pot- 
ters, and  more  graceful  in  outline. 

It  is  true  that  the  fleur-de-lis,  or  lily,  which  was  a  com- 
mon decorative  motive  in  France  and  England  and  other 
parts  of  Europe,  closely  resembled,  in  its  conventionalized 
forms,  the  lotus  of  Egypt  and  Japan  and  the  tulip  of  Persia 
and  Germany,  yet  in  much  of  the  English  and  French  pottery 


2.     EXAMPLES  OF   OLD   GERMAN   POTTERY 

With  Molded  Reliefs  and  Slip-Painted  Ornaments. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 

the  latter,  in  its  more  naturalistic  representations,  is  unmis- 
takable. Just  when  "tulip  ware"  began  to  be  made  in 
Germany  is  uncertain,  but  it  is  highly  probable  that  the 
German  slip  potters  commenced  to  use  the  tulip  motive  be- 
fore the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  or  soon  after  the  in- 
troduction of  the  plant  into  their  country,  about  1559,  and 


Ol:  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


35 


we  know  that  it  was  taken  from  Vienna  into  England  about 

1578. 

Three  interesting  examples  of  seventeenth  century  pot- 
ters- from  Creussen,  Bavaria,  may  be  seen  in  the  Bloomfield 


3.    SLIP-PAIN'TED   DISH. 

Polychrome  Designs  on  Black  Ground. 

Made  in  Germany  in  1S26  and  brought  to  Pennsylvania. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum.  Philadelphia. 

Moore  collection  of  the  Pennsylvania  Museum.  Two  of 
these  are  mugs,  the  third  being  a  wine  jug  or  cruche.  The 
basis  of  the  ornamentation  is  relief  work,  evidently  produced 


36  TULIP  WARE 

in  molds.  Over  the  raised  designs  liquid  slip  or  barbotine 
of  various  colors — white,  red,  yellow,  green  and  blue — 
have  been  painted  with  a  brush.  The  mug  on  the  right  is 
ornamented  with  figures  of  saints  between  which  are  sprays 
of  lilies  of  the  valley,  and  under  the  handle  is  the  date  1672, 
in  white  slip.  On  the  front  of  the  jug  are  figures  of  the 
Virgin  and  Child  and  at  each  side  are  serpentine  traceries 
in  white  and  artificially  tinted  slips.  The  ware  itself  is  a 
compact  brown  pottery  or  stoneware. 

In  the  collection  of  American  Pottery  and  Porcelain 
may  be  seen  an  interesting  example  of  imported  work, — a 
large  dish  which  was  brought  from  Germany  by  the  recent 
owners  who  settled  in  the  Pennsylvania-German  district. 
The  clay  as  shown  on  the  back  is  of  a  lighter  and  brighter 
red  color  than  any  of  the  Pennsylvania  ware,  and  the  face  is 
entirely  covered  with  a  deep  black  manganiferous  glaze. 
The  ornamentation  is  traced  in  brightly  colored  slips, — red, 
,  yellow,  green  and  white, — which  stand  out  effectively  on  the 
jet  black  ground.  In  the  center  is  a  house,  on  the  roof  of 
which  is  perched  a  gigantic  bird;  at  the  side  is  a  female 
figure  and  an  enormous  garden  vase  filled  with  flowers  of 
many  hues,  while  beneath  is  the  date  1826.  In  decorative 
treatment  this  example  resembles  the  Pennsylvania  pieces 
described  on  page  68,  and  in  shape  it  is  almost  identical, 
with  the  difference  that  the  marginal  ledge  has  been  folded 
back  and  downwards  against  the  sides.  There  can  be  little 
doubt  that  imported  pieces  of  this  character,  which  are  now 
so  rarely  met  with  in  this  country,  were  once  comparatively 
abundant  here  and  exerted  an  important  influence  on  the 
art  in  the  Pennsylvania-German  community. 

The  art  of  slip-decoration  seems  to  have  been  taken 
from  Germany  or  Switzerland  into  France.  While  surviv- 
ing examples  of  sgraffito  work  from  French  potteries  are 
perhaps  not  abundant,  an  excellent  specimen  is  figured  by 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


37 


M.    Ris    Paquot   in    his   superb    work   on   Ancient    Faience. 
This  piece,  which  is  in  the  Sevres  Museum,  is  of  red  earthen 
ware  and  hears  a  scratched  device  in  the  center  represent- 
ing a  tulip  plant  with  five  flowers,  surrounded  by  a  bro 
band   of  lattice  or  checker   work.      Around    the    marly   or 


4.    SGRAFFITO    PLATE. 

Probably  Seventeenth  Century. 

By   Entoine  of  Anglefontaine.   France. 

In  the  Museum  of  Amiens. 


border  are  inscribed  these  words,  in  Gothic,  or  old  German 
characters: 

"Je  Cuis  planter  pour  raverdir,  vive  Truppet." 
I  am  planted  to  bloom  again,  long  live  Truppet.* 


■Vide  Histoirc  Generate  de  la  Faience  Ancienne  Francaise  el  Elrangers, 
Paris.  1874  and  1876.  plate  11. 


38  TULIP  WARE 

After  each  word  is  scratched  a  conventionalized  tulip. 
The  surface  is  covered  with  a  transparent  glaze,  which  re- 
veals the  presence  of  a  large  amount  of  oxide  of  copper  that 
appears  in  green  streaks  and  patches  across  the  white  engobe 
or  coating  of  slip.  This  piece,  which  is  particularly  inter- 
esting on  account  of  its  striking  resemblance,  both  in  the 
lettering  and  general  treatment,  to  the  Pennsylvania-Ger- 
man ware,  is  supposed  to  belong  to  the  early  part  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  but  may  be  older. 

In  plate  19  of  the  same  work  is  shown  a  similar  dish  in 
the  Amiens  Museum,  made  of  red  clay  covered  with  yellow 
engobe,  through  which  has  been  graved  with  a  sharp  point 
a  device  consisting  of  a  man  on  horseback  and  a  dog  beneath. 
The  border  is  ornamented  with  foliated  scrollwork,  the  yel- 
low and  red  of  the  superior  and  lower  clays  being  enriched 
by  touches  of  green.  Over  all  is  a  lead  glaze  which  brings 
out  and  intensifies  the  rich  coloring  of  the  clay  (illustration 
4).  On  the  back  of  the  plate,  in  letters  traced  with  a  point, 
are  the  names  of  the  maker  and  place  of  fabrication,  "En- 
toine  d'Englefontaine."  This  subject  bears  a  remarkable 
resemblance  to  some  of  the  decorative  devices  found  on  cer- 
tain pieces  of  German-American  ware,  notably  those  pro- 
duced by  Johannes  Xeesz  (see  illustration  48). 

Another  plate  of  the  same  character,  to  be  seen  in  the 
museum  at  Amiens,  shows  a  sgraffito  design  in  red  and 
white  of  a  soldier  on  horseback,  with  helmet  on  head  and 
lance  in  hand,  and  a  foliage  border,  somewhat  similar  to 
that  of  the  preceding.  On  the  bottom  is  inscribed  "St. 
George  Patron  of  Englefontaine." 

A  third  example  is  decorated  with  a  vase  of  flowers. 
To  the  right  and  left  are  figures  of  a  man  and  woman  bear- 
ing fruit  in  their  hands  and  on  the  back  are  scratched  these 
words:  "Ad.  Rebaix-M.  H.  Pilate."  Other  pieces  in  the 
sgraffito    style   are   embellished   with    figures   of  birds   and 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  39 

flowers.  These  productions  were  made  at  Anglefontaine  in 
the  department  of  Nord,  the  extreme  northern  part  of 
France,  just  across  the  Belgian  line  and  not  far  from  the 
(  rerman  frontier. 

In  Pennsylvania,  sgraffito  ware  was  being  made  as 
early  as  1733,  as  is  indicated  by  an  interesting  example,  in 
the  collection  of  Mr.  George  II.  Danner,  of  Manheim,  Pa., 
which  is  inscribed  with  that  date,  and  it  is  more  than  prob- 
able that  for  several  years  previous  to  that  time  the  trans 
planted  art  had  flourished  here  (see  illustration  83). 

It  is  certain  that  slip  decoration  was  in  vogue  in  cer- 
tain parts  of  Germany,  notably  in  Saxony,  more  than  two 
hundred  years  ago,  and  when  the  first  German  immigrants 
settled  in  Pennsylvania,  they  brought  the  art  with  them 
and  established  it  as  a  new  process  of  ceramic  manufacture 
in  the  States.  In  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries 
slip-decorated  earthenware  was  made  to  a  considerable  ex- 
tent in  certain  localities  in  England,  but  the  earlv  English 
potters  do  not  seem  to  haw  pursued  this  branch  of  their 
calling  to  any  extent  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic.  The  reason 
for  this  is  obvious.  While  the  English  came  from  many 
-vet ions,  previous  to  the  full  development  of  this  art  at 
home,  and  scattered  over  a  vast  extent  of  territory  in  this 
country,  the  Germans,  arriving  at  a  later  date,  fresh  from 
a  section  where  slip-decoration  was  at  its  height,  established 
a  community  of  their  own  m  eastern  Pennsylvania,  isolated 
from  all  extraneous  influences,  and  continued  to  ply  their 
homely  arts  as  they  had  learned  them  in  the  fatherland. 
These  pioneer  potters  erected  numerous  small  pot-works 
for  the  manufacture  of  such  wares  as  were  needed  to  supply 
the  simple  wants  of  the  people.  Each  local  pottery  seems 
to  have  been  supported  by  the  patronage  of  relatives, 
neighbors  and  friends  of  the  proprietor,  or  by  sales  which 
were  made  in  the  neighboring:  towns,  and  as  the  trade  was 


40  TULIP  WARE 

confined  almost  entirely  to  the  limited  section  occupied  by 
the  German  settlers,  it  is  not  surprising  that  these  German- 
American  productions  have  only  recently  attracted  attention. 

There  are  several  points  of  difference  in  the  processes 
of  slip-decoration  as  practised  in  England  and  America. 
The  English  potter  was  accustomed  to  use  a  slip  cup  which 
was  closed  at  the  top,  the  only  opening  being  a  small  air 
hole,  by  means  of  which  the  flow  of  the  liquid  clay  could  be 
regulated  by  the  thumb  of  the  operator.  When  the  hole 
was  opened  to  admit  the  air  the  slip  flowed  freely  and  when 
closed  the  flow  was  stopped.  The  German-American  potter 
used  an  open  cup  and  controlled  the  passage  of  the  decorat- 
ing material  by  quickly  and  dexterously  raising  the  quill 
when  the  flow  was  to  be  interrupted. 

The  glazing  of  the  English  ware  was  accomplished  by 
dusting  over  the  surface  powdered  galena  which  in  the  oven 
melted  and  overspread  the  ware.  In  America  the  glaze 
was  obtained  by  the  use  of  a  liquid  preparation  of  red  lead, 
or  occasionally  of  crude  ore,  which  had  been  mixed  with 
clay. 

A  third  point  of  dissimilarity  to  be  noted  is  the  employ- 
ment of  oxide  of  copper  or  verdigris  by  the  Pennsylvania 
potters  to  produce  the  green  color  so  often  seen  on  their 
products,  which  on  the  English  ware  is  seldom  if  ever  found. 
In  sgraffito  work  the  decorative  drawings  on  the  latter  are 
generally  ruder  and  more  primitive  than  those  found  upon 
the  products  of  the  German-Americans. 

The  processes  of  the  old  slip  potters  in  Pennsylvania 
were  practically  the  same  as  those  which  obtained  in  the 
Valley  of  the  Rhine  in  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  cen- 
turies. They  made  no  improvements  and  never  deviated 
from  the  time-honored  methods  of  their  ancestors.  On  the 
other  hand,  we  find  that  they  exerted  a  strong  influence  on 
their  English-speaking  neighbors,  who  soon  began  to  imitate 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


-M 


the  wares  which  were  being  made  in  the  German  community. 
As  early  as  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  a  number  of 
American  potters  in  Bucks  county  began  the  manufacture  of 
slip-decorated  earthenware,  having  adopted  the  German 
methods,  even  to  the  extent  of  employing  the  tulip  as  a  dec- 
orative motive  and  using  English  inscriptions  to  beautify 
their  more  ornate  productions. 


5.    TULIT  MOTIVE. 


IV.     Tools  and  Processes 
of  Manufacture 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Tools  and  Processes  of  Manufacture. 

I  he  processes  employed  in  the  manufacture  of  earthen 
ware  are  practically  the  same  to-day  as  they  were  a  century 
or  more  ago.  but  the  appliances  used  by  the  old  Pennsyl- 
vania-German potter  were  more  primitive  than  those  of  the 
modern  city  factories.  All  of  the  old  German  potters  have 
passed  away,  but  Mr.  A.  I!.  Eiaring,  of  Frenchtovvn,  X.  J., 
who  in  his  youth  assisted  in  his  father's  pottery  in  Xocka- 
mixon  township,  Bucks  county.  Pa.,  has  furnished  the 
writer  descriptions  of  the  old  methods  of  procedure  as  prac- 
tised  in  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

PREPARATION    OF    THE    (LAV. 

The  first  requisite  in  making  pottery  is  to  procure  suit- 
able clay.  In  the  fall  of  the  year,  after  the  busy  season  was 
over,  the  Pennsylvania-German  potter  began  to  lay  in  his 
supply  for  the  coming  year.  After  selecting  a  suitable  spot 
for  digging  a  pit.  the  soil  from  the  surface  was  taken  off  and 
the  clay  beneath  was  hauled  to  the  pottery  and  dumped  in 
a  pile  close  to  the  building:  it  was  then  placed  in  a  clay  mill 
to  be  ground.  This  mill  was  simply  an  upright  post  with 
a  number  of  knives  set  in  it  which  revolved  in  the  center  of 
a  stationary  tub  or  vat.  To  the  post  was  attached  a  long 
beam  or  "sweep"  to  which  a  horse  was  hooked  to  furnish 
the  motive  power.  When  the  tub  was  nearly  filled  with 
clay,  water  was  sprinkled  upon  it  and  the  horse  started  on 
his    rounds.      This   grinding    operation    was   continued    for 

45 


46  TULIP  WARE 

about  an  hour,  when  the  clay  was  considered  fit  to  use,  hav- 
ing been  changed  from  a  bluish  crumbly  mass  to  a  yellowish 
color,  soft  and  plastic  as  putty.  It  was  then  taken  out  in 
large  handfuls,  like  butter  from  a  churn,  and  piled  on  a 
bench,  after  which  it  was  manipulated  into  a  rectangular 
shape  like  a  block  of  building  stone.  These  lumps,  weighing 
about  one  hundred  pounds  each,  were  then  carried  to  the 
cellar  beneath  the  shop,  where  they  were  piled  up  like 
stones  in  a  wall  to  keep  them  moist  and  prevent  them  from 
freezing  in  the  cold  weather,  as  the  least  frost  would  have 
ruined  the  clay  and  made  it  necessary  to  grind  it  over  again. 
When  the  potter  was  ready  to  commence  work,  he 
brought  a  supply  of  the  clay  from  the  cellar  and  deposited  it 
on  a  long  workbench,  measuring  about  eighteen  inches  in 
width  and  standing  some  thirty  inches  from  the  ground. 
From  the  lump  of  clay,  he  cut  with  a  wire  a  piece  of  the 
size  he  judged  it  would  take  to  make  up  a  benchful  of  pots. 
This  was  worked  and  kneaded  over  and  over  again  and  every 
piece  of  gravel  or  fragment  of  wood  carefully  picked  out. 
After  all  foreign  substances  had  been  removed  the  clay  was 
broken  up  into  lumps  and  slapped  vigorously  together  sev- 
eral times  in  order  to  expel  the  air. 

The  clay  now  being  in  the  proper  condition  for  working, 
the  potter  cut  and  rolled  it  into  small  flattened  balls,  each 
of  which  contained  sufficient  material  to  make  a  pot  or  other 
vessel,  being  able  by  experience  to  gauge  the  quantity  by 
his  eye  and  by  the  weight  of  it  in  his  hands. 

THE  POTTER'S  WHEEL. 

The  potter's  wheel  of  that  period  consisted  of  a  wooden 
frame  about  four  feet  square  and  three  and  a  half  feet  in 
height  which  had  a  wooden  top  like  that  of  a  table.  Through 
the  center  of  this  penetrated  a  shaft  of  iron  which  was  bent 
about  a  foot  from  the  bottom  end  to  form  a  crank.     The 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  47 

lower  end  of  the  shaft  was  set  in  a  cup  of  iron,  the  upper 
end  projecting  through  an  iron  box  and  terminating  in  a 
screw  to  which  was  attached  a  flat  disc  or  head  on  which  the 
clay  was  turned  to  form  the  vessel.  This  head  was  made  of 
some  tough  wood  like  gum  or  elm  which  does  not  crack  or 
warp  readily,  and  measured  about  fifteen  inches  in  diameter 
and  some  six  inches  in  thickness.  To  the  lower  end  of  the 
shaft,  beneath  the  crank,  was  fastened  a  large  horizontal 
balance  wheel  made  of  inch  boards  with  spokes  crossing 
each  other  at  right  angles.  This  made  a  stilt'  wheel  two 
incites  in  thickness  and  from  three  to  three  feet  and  a  half 
in  diameter,  of  considerable  weight,  which  acted  as  a  balance 
wheel  to  cause  the  machine  to  run  steadily  under  a  varying 
load.  The  motion  was  transferred  to  the  wheel  head  by 
means  of  a  long  bar  or  beam  of  wood,  called  a  treadle,  which 
ran  diagonally  across  the  lower  part  of  the  frame,  being 
hinged  at  one  end  ami  connected  with  the  crank  of  the 
shaft  by  a  piece  of  iron  directly  above  the  balance  wheel. 
When  the  potter  was  ready  to  commence  work,  he  placed  his 
left  foot  (in  the  treadle  and  with  his  right  foot  gave  a  kick 
to  the  balance  wheel  to  start  it.  continuing  the  motion  by 
the  use  of  the  treadle. 

MAKING    HOLLOW    WARE. 

Taking  a  ball  of  cla\  from  the  pile  at  his  right 
hand,  the  potter  threw  it  with  considerable  force  on  the 
revolving  wheel  head  to  make  it  adhere  firmly.  Then,  wet- 
ting his  bands  in  a  pot  of  water  which  he  kept  at  his  right, 
he  grasped  the  clay  with  both  hands  and  with  a  dexterous 
movement  centered  it  on  the  wheel  head.  Wetting  his 
hands  again,  be  inserted  his  thumbs  in  the  plastic  mass  and 
thrust  them  downward  almost  to  the  revolving  head,  leav- 
ing only  enough  clay  between  his  thumbs  and  the  wheel  to 
form   the  bottom   of  the   vessel.      With   the  fingfers  of  both 


4 8  TULIP  WARE 

hands  inserted  in  the  center  of  the  spinning  mass,  he  then 
drew  the  clay  outward  and  upward  until  the  walls  of  the 
vessel  had  been  formed.  His  left  hand  was  then  placed 
inside  of  the  rapidly  revolving  shell  and  his  right  held  to 
the  outside.  Pressing  the  two  hands  gradually  together 
and  slowly  drawing  them  upward  until  the  desired  height 
was  obtained,  with  skillful  touch  he  drew  the  neck  and 
mouth  of  the  vessel  into  the  desired  form. 


6.    TOOLS  OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA-GERMAN  POTTERS. 

Small  Pie  Plate  Mold. 

Batter  or  Pounder. 

Roller. 

Disc  Cutter. 

Slip  Cup  or  Quill  Box 

Coggles  or  Decorating  Wheels. 

Ribs  or   Smoothers. 

SMOOTHERS,  OR  "RIBS." 

After  the  jar  or  crock  had  been  formed,  the  surface  was 
smoothed  by  holding  against  the  outside,  while  yet  revolv- 
ing, a  tool  called  a  "rib,"  which  was  a  small  piece  of  wood, 
leather  or  calabash,  of  square  or  rounded  form,  usually  hav- 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  49 

ing  a  hole  in  the  center  for  the  thumb  and  finger.  This  was 
a  simple  affair,  made  by  the  workman  to  suit  his  require- 
ments. Then  a  wet  sponge  was  passed  over  the  surface  of 
the  clay,  both  on  the  outside  and  inside,  to  give  it  the  fin- 
ishing touches. 

FINISHING  BRUSHES. 

If  in  the  process  of  smoothing  the  surface  any  rough 
places  appeared  on  the  ware,  which  could  not  he  readily 
reached  with  the  a\^c  of  the  "rib,"  a  brush  made  of  hog 
bristles  tied  to  a  stick  was  used  to   touch  up  the  defective 

^potS. 

THE    CUTTING    WIRE. 

The  vessel  now  being  ready  to  be  taken  from  the  wheel, 
the  potter  pressed  his  right  foot  on  the  balance  wheel, 
which  acted  as  a  brake  and  brought  the  machine  to  a  stop. 
To  loosen  the  vessel  from  the  wheel  head,  a  fine  brass  wire, 
about  a  foot  in  length,  having  a  small  piece  of  wood  at- 
tached to  each  end  to  act  as  a  handle,  was  grasped  in  the 
two  hands  of  the  workman  and  drawn  across  the  wheel  head 
immediately  below  the  vessel,  thus  cutting  the  moist  clay 
from  the  wood.  The  finished  piece  was  then  gently  lifted  off 
and  deposited  on  a  board  at  the  left  of  the  potter.  This 
operation  was  continued  until  the  board  was  filled,  when  it 
was  carried  to  a  strong  rack  built  at  one  side  of  the  shop, 
where  the  vessels  were  left  to  dry. 

GLAZING    THE    WARE. 

The  "green"  ware,  as  it  was  called  when  in  this  con- 
dition, was  examined  from  day  to  flay  in  order  to  ascertain 
if  it  were  drying  evenly.  When  it  became  sufficiently  firm, 
the  potter  turned  each  piece  upside  down  and  with  the  "rib" 
and  wet  sponge  smoothed  the  rough  base.  At  this  stage 
handles  were  attached  to  jugs,  pitchers  and  crocks 


5o  TULIP  WARE 

In  a  day  or  so  the  ware  was  again  examined,  and  when, 
by  his  experienced  touch,  the  potter  was  satisfied  that  it  was 
in  the  right  condition  for  glazing,  he  pulled  out  one  board 
at  a  time  and  placed  it  with  its  fragile  contents  on  a  trestle. 
If  the  glazing  were  not  applied  at  the  right  period  in  the 
drying  process,  it  was  likely  to  peel  off,  or  the  ware  might 
crack. 

The  glazing  was  usually  made  from  red  lead.  Galena, 
broken  as  fine  as  sand,  was  sometimes  used,  but  was  not 
always  obtainable.  The  lead  was  first  placed  in  a  large  jar 
and  water  was  added  to  form  a  thin  mixture.  Ordinary  clay 
which  had  been  worked  very  fine  and  smooth  was  added  in 
order  to  thicken  the  mixture,  which  was  then  ready  to  run 
through  the  glazing  mill,  to  make  it  smooth  and  homoge- 
neous. This  was  a  primitive  affair  consisting  of  two  stones, 
one  on  the  other,  smooth  on  the  grinding  faces.  Around 
the  circumference  of  the  lower  stone  was  a  rim  in  which 
the  upper  stone,  which  was  of  smaller  size,  rested.  In  the 
center  of  the  upper  stone  was  a  hole  into  which  the  glaze 
was  poured,  which  flowed  out  at  the  side  between  the  upper 
and  the  projecting  rim  of  the  nether  stone.  The  mill  was 
worked  by  a  pole  with  a  crank,  which  extended  from  the 
upper  stone  to  the  roof. 

The  glazing  composition,  after  having  been  thoroughly 
ground,  was  applied  to  pots  and  crocks  by  pouring  the 
liquid  in  and  whirling  the  vessel  around  until  every  spot  on 
the  inside  was  coated,  after  which  the  surplus  was  emptied 
out.  The  edge  of  the  vessel  was  then  wiped  carefully  with 
a  sponge  to  prevent  it  from  sticking  fast  to  any  object  with 
which  it  might  come  into  contact  during  the  process  of 
baking  in  the  kiln.  When  vessels  were  to  be  glazed  on  the 
outside,  they  were  dipped  in  the  liquid.  When  a  board  was 
filled  with  the  glazed  ware  it  was  carried  back  to  the  rack, 
where  it   remained  until  the  pieces  were  dry,   after  which 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  51 

they  were  removed  to  the  storeroom  and  left  until  a  suffi- 
cient number  were  accumulated  to  fill  the  kiln.  When 
burned  or  fired  the  glaze  mixture  became  a  yellowish,  trans 
lucent  glass.  To  the  lead  glazing  was  sometimes  added  a 
small  quantity  of  manganese  to  make  it  darker.  When 
black  glaze  was  desired,  a  larger  quantity  of  manganese  was 
used.  To  produce  a  greenish  tint  a  little  verdigris  was  sub- 
stituted. Sometimes  the  verdigris  was  dabbed  on  the  ware 
in  spots  and  when  melted  it  produced  a  mottled  appearance, 
with  pleasing  effects,  when  properly  done.  After  the  galena 
mines  were  discovered  in  New  Britain  township.  Bucks 
county,  some  of  the  local  potters  procured  the  native 
and  used  it  in  place  of  red  lead.  It  proved  to  be  much 
cheaper  and  answered  the  same  purpi 

MAKING    PIE    PLATES. 

After  the  clay  was  prepared,  in  the  same  manner  a-  for 
making  crocks  and  pots,  it  was  cut  into  small  pieces  by 
means  of  a  brass  wire  and  taken  to  the  workbench  1.1  be 
made  into  plates  and  dishes. 

POUNDERS   OR    "BATTERS." 

An  implement  of  wood,  flat  on  one  side  and  rounded  on 
the  other,  with  a  handle  at  one  end,  was  employed  for  beat- 
ing or  pounding  out  the  clay  roughly  into  a  flattened  form, 
which  was  the  first  stage  in  the  process  of  plate  making. 
These  sheets  of  claw  which  resemhled  in  appearance  enor- 
mous buckwheat  cakes,  were  then  piled  one  on  top  of  the 
other  to  the  height  of  about  a  foot. 

ROLLING-PI  XS. 

The  batted  cakes  of  clay  were  then  rolled  thin  by  means 
of  a  wooden  implement  called  a  roller,  shaped  like  the  or- 
dinary rolling-pin  used  for  spreading  out  dough,  with  the 


52  TULIP  WARE 

difference  that  it  was  made  in  two  pieces,  the  handles  being 
attached  to  a  wooden  rod  which  passed  through  the  body. 
When  the  handles  were  firmly  grasped  in  the  hands,  the 
body  of  the  roller,  which  was  separate,  revolved  over  the 
clay. 

DISC    CUTTERS. 

After  the  clay  had  been  rolled  out  into  a  thin,  even 
sheet,  an  implement  called  a  disc  cutter  was  used  to  cut  cir- 
cular pieces  of  different  diameters,  as  required.  This  tool 
consisted  of  a  wooden  arm  supported  on  one  end  by  a  small 
foot  or  block  of  wood,  of  circular  or  octagonal  form,  in 
which  the  arm  revolved,  and  at  the  other  end  was  a  metal 
point,  usually  a  common  horseshoe  nail,  which  passed 
through  it  at  a  right  angle,  with  the  point  down.  The 
small  block  of  wood  on  which  the  arm  revolved  was  grasped 
with  the  fingers  of  the  left  hand  and  set  on  the  soft  clay  as 
near  the  center  of  the  sheet  as  could  be  calculated,  and  held 
there  while  the  right  hand  of  the  operator  carried  the  arm 
completely  around  the  circle.  The  nail  or  metal  point  cut 
its  way  through  the  plastic  clay  and  turned  out  a  perfect 
disc.  The  diameter  of  the  circle  was  regulated  by  transfer- 
ring the  cutting  nail  to  different  holes  in  the  end  of  the 
implement.  These  "bats,"  as  they  were  called,  were  then 
laid  on  boards  to  become  partially  dry.  To  prevent  the 
clay  from  sticking-  while  being  batted  and  rolled,  the  bench 
was  first  sprinkled  with  dust,  a  supply  of  which  had  been 
gathered  during  the  summer  from  the  highway,  carefully 
sifted  and  laid  away  for  the  winter  work. 

SLIP  CUPS   OR  QUILL  BOXES. 

After  the  clay  discs  had  dried  for  a  day  or  two  they  were 
brought  out  to  receive  their  slip-decorations,  which  were 
applied  by  means  of  the  slip  cup,  an  earthen  vessel  about 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  53 

the  size  of  a  coffee  cup.  usually  with  depressions  on  either 
side  to  tit  the  ringers  and  thumb  of  the  operator.  Near  the 
lower  part  of  one  side  of  the  cup  were  perforations  in  which 
goose  quills  were  inserted,  through  which  the  liquid  slip 
was  made  to  trickle  over  the  surface  of  the  ware  in  various 
patterns  in  the  same  maimer  in  which  designs  in  sugar  icing 
are  applied  to  a  pound  cake  by  a  modem  pastry  cook. 

The  slip  was  prepared  by  mixing  white  clay  with 
water  until  it  was  of  the  consistence  of  thick  cream.  At 
one  time  the  Pennsylvania-German  potters  were  compelled 
to  import  clay  for  this  purpose,  but  at  a  later  date  suitable 
clay  was  discovered  in  New  Jersey. 


7.    SLIP   Cl'P  WITH  THREE   QUILLS 
For    Decorating   Commercial    Pie    Plates. 

Grasping  the  slip  cup  between  the  thumb  and  fingers 
of  the  right  hand,  the  decorator  drew  the  quills  over  the 
surface  of  the  clay  in  waving  or  zigzag  lines,  the  slip  being 
made  to  flow  out  by  Hie  power  of  attraction,  very  much  in 
the  same  way  as  ink  is  drawn  from  a  fountain  pen  by  con- 
tact with  the  paper.  There  were  generally  three  quills  or 
pipes  in  the  cups  used  for  this  character  of  work  on  ordinary 
commercial  wares,  though  the  number  varied,  sometimes 
reaching:  five  or  seven.     For  fine  work,  such  as  lettering:  or 


54  TULIP  WARE 

outlining  figures,  a  single  quill  was  used.  Occasionally  the 
three  quill  box  was  temporarily  converted  into  a  single 
quill  cup  by  taking  out  the  superfluous  quills  and  stopping 
up  the  holes  with  clay. 

After  the  slip-decoration  had  been  applied,  the  discs 
were  again  set  aside  to  dry  sufficiently  not  to  smear.  The 
potter  then  took  each  disc  in  turn  and  beat  it  on  the  dec- 
orated side  with  the  flat  side  of  the  "batter."  By  this  treat- 
ment the  slip-decorations  were  forced  into  the  clay,  so  that 
the  surface  was  made  entirely  smooth  and  even. 

MOLDING   DISHES. 

At  this  point  in  the  process  the  clay  was  about  half 
dry.  In  order  to  shape  the  plate  or  dish  a  mold  was  used. 
This  was  made  of  clay,  very  thick  and  heavy  and  baked 
hard,  in  shape  resembling  a  clumsy,  heavy  pie  plate.  The 
mold  was  placed  on  the  table  with  the  rounded  side  up  and 
with  both  hands  the  potter,  with  considerable  force,  threw 
or  slapped  one  of  the  discs  on  the  mold,  with  the  decorated 
side  downwards.  This  throwing  was  repeated  two  or  three 
times  in  order  to  cause  the  disc  to  partly  assume  the  shape 
of  the  mold.  The  clay  was  then  rubbed  with  the  hand  of 
the  potter  over  the  entire  surface  until  the  disc  adhered 
closely  to  the  mold  in  every  part.  The  surface  was  then 
smoothed  with  a  spatula  or  knife  after  a  wet  sponge  had 
been  passed  over  it.  Turning  the  mold  over,  the  potter  then 
with  the  spatula  trimmed  the  clay  close  to  the  edge  of  the 
mold. 

DECORATING   WHEELS,    OR   "COGGLES." 

The  formed  plate  was  then  ready  to  be  loosened  from 
the  mold,  and,  after  being  lifted  off,  a  tool  called  a  "coggle," 
was  run  around  the  edge  to  make  the  little  notches  or  in- 
dentations which  are  so  characteristic  of  the  old-time  pie 


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56  TULIP  WARE 

plates.  The  earliest  of  these  wheels  were  cut  out  of  wood, 
but  at  a  later  date  they  were  made  of  iron.  Such  imple- 
ments are  yet  in  use  in  country  potteries. 

GLAZING    PIE   PLATES. 

The  ware  was  then  permitted  to  become  perfectly  dry 
to  be  made  ready  for  glazing.  In  cold  weather  the  unbaked 
pieces  were  first  heated  by  piling  them  on  the  top  of  a  large 
stove.  When  sufficiently  warm,  the  lead  glaze  was  applied 
to  the  inside  surface  by  means  of  a  large  paint  brush.  If 
the  glazing  was  done  in  the  summer  time,  a  bright  sun- 
shiny day  was  selected,  and  the  dishes  were  taken  out  of 
doors  and  spread  on  the  ground,  where  they  were  allowed 
to  remain  for  an  hour  or  two  until  they  had  become  thor- 
oughly warmed  throughout.  The  potter  then  seated  him- 
self on  a  stool  and  glazed  them  rapidly  with  a  brush  while 
they  were  passed  to  him,  one  at  a  time,  by  a  boy  assistant. 

By  examining  the  backs  of  dishes  which  have  been 
baked  in  the  kiln,  the  lead  glaze  can  readily  be  distinguished 
in  places  where  it  has  flown  over  the  edges.  This  glaze 
was  transparent  and  of  a  yellowish  tint,  softening  the  white 
slip  which  it  covered  and  bringing  out  the  deep  red  color 
of  the  clay  body  beneath. 

HOW  SLIP-DECORATED  POTTERY  WAS   MADE. 

Such  was  the  process  employed  by  the  old  Pennsyl- 
vania-German potters  in  the  manufacture  of  commercial 
wares.  When  decorating  special  pieces,  however,  with  cen- 
tral devices  of  birds,  animals  and  marginal  inscriptions,  the 
plates  were  first  shaped  over  the  mold  and  trailings  of 
white  clay  were  afterwards  applied  to  the  concave  surface 
by  means  of  a  slip  cup  with  a  single  quill.  The  decoration 
was  not  beaten  into  the  surface  as  in  the  common  wares, 
but  was  allowed  to  stand  out  in  relief.     These  pieces  were 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  57 

not  intended  for  use,  but  for  decorating  purposes  entirely. 
The  object  in  pounding  the  decoration  into  the  surface  of 
the  clay  was  to  prevent  the  designs  from  wearing  off  with 
use,  or  flaking  away  under  the  influence  of  heat.    Frequenth 


9.    SINGLE  QUILL  SLIP  CUP. 
For   Ornamental    Slip-Tracing. 

before  the  baking,  touches  of  metallic  color  were  applied 
to  certain  parts  of  the  designs  by  means  of  verdigris  or 
oxide  of  copper  and  other  coloring  substances. 

HOW  SGRAFFITO  WARE  WAS  MADE. 

The  reverse  of  slip-decoration,  where  the  designs  are  in 
intaglio,  is  what  is  known  as  sgraffito  or  scratched  work. 
By  this  process  the  slip  cup  is  dispensed  with  and  the  orna- 


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OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  59 

mentation  instead  of  appearing  in  relief,  or  imbedded  in  the 
level  surface,  is  depressed  in  the  clay.  After  the  plates  had 
been  shaped  over  the  mold,  the  upper  concave  surface  was 
entirely  covered  with  a  coating  of  white  slip  and  through 
this  layer  the  designs  were  cut  or  etched  by  means  of  a 
sharpened  stick,  to  bring  out  the  bright  color  of  the  under 
stratum  of  clay. 

This  variety  of  decoration  was  practised  by  the  Penn- 
sylvania-German potters  much  more  extensively  than  slip- 
tracing.  More  elaborate  designs  could  be  executed  and 
better  results  procured  1>\  this  method  than  by  the  more 
clumsy  process  of  tracing  lines  with  a  viscous  liquid.  In 
both  of  the  above  described  processes  the  decorated  ware 
passed  through  but  one  firing,  except  in  rare  cases  where 
more  elaborately  executed  pieces  were  subjected  to  two 
bakings. 

THE    KILN. 

The  typical  form  of  the  old  kilns  used  by  the  German 
potters  in  eastern  Pennsylvania  was  round,  though  a  few 
were  square  on  the  outside  with  circular  interiors.  They 
were  usually  about  seven  feet  in  height  at  the  center  and  six 
feet  at  the  sides,  with  a  diameter  of  about  nine  feet.  The 
roof  or  crown  was  made  of  brick,  slightly  arched,  while  the 
walls  were  of  stone  held  together  at  the  top  by  bands  of 
iron  or  heavy  timber  to  prevent  spreading.  In  the  early 
times  the  pottery  and  house  were  under  the  same  roof. 
This  arrangement  was  economical  as  well  as  convenient, 
since  it  was  necessary  to  keep  good  fires  constantly  burning 
m  winter,  day  and  night,  to  prevent  the  green  ware  from 
freezing;  at  a  later  period  many  of  the  well-to-do  potters 
erected  new  houses  to  live  in,  while  the  old  buildings  were 
turned  over  to  the  uses  of  the  pottery. 


6o 


TULIP  WARE 


HOW  WARE  WAS   BURNED. 

The  day  fixed  for  "setting"  or  filling  the  kiln  was  a 
busy  one  at  the  country  pottery.  The  crocks  and  jars  and 
other  utensils  of  hollow  form  were  nested,  that  is,  the  dif- 
ferent sizes  were  placed  one  within  the  other,  great  care 
being  taken  however  that  they  did  not  come  into  contact 
with  each  other  at  any  point,  as  they  would  stick  together 
and  be  ruined  if  they  touched.  Around  the  walls  of  the 
kiln  they  were  piled,  one  row  on  top  of  another,  the  hollow 
ware  being  placed  upside  down  so  that  it  would  readily 
catch  the  heat  from  below.  Each  row  was  so  arranged  that 
the  pieces  would  cover  the  spaces  between  those  of  the  row 


OLD  PENNSYLVANIA-GERMAN  KILN   (see  p.  179). 


beneath.  At  the  top  of  the  kiln  the  plates  and  dishes  were 
set  on  edge,  as  they  did  not  require  so  great  a  heat  as  the 
other  ware,  and  were  separated  by  small  clay  wedges  to 
prevent  them  from  touching. 

When  the  kiln  was  properly  filled,  the  entrance  was 
closed  up  with  brick  and  plastered  on  the  outside  with  clay 
which  had  been  mixed  with  soil,  to  make  the  kiln  air-tight. 


0F  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  6i 

Early  in  the  morning  the  fires  under  the  kiln  were  lighted. 
There  were  two  fireplaces,  one  on  either  side,  directly  op- 
posite each  other,  which  were  connected  by  a  straight  tun- 
nel which  pa^ed  through  a  circular  tunnel  in  the  middle 
of  the  kiln,  by  means  of  which  the  heat  penetrated  into 
every  part  of  the  interior.  For  the  space  of  about  six 
hours  the  firing  was  very  light,  barely  sufficient  to  gently 
warm  the  inside  of  the  kiln,  as  it  was  necessary  to  incre 
the  heat  gradually.  From  about  noon  until  evening  the 
temperature  was  greatly  increased.  Throughout  the  night 
and  during  the  next  day  cord  wood  was  piled  into  the  fire- 
places as  rapidly  as  it  could  he  consumed.  Twenty-four 
hours  after  the  tire  had  been  started  the  greatest  heat  had 
been  obtained  and  the  tunnels  were  half  filled  with  live 
coals,  which  were  then  spread  into  every  part  with  long- 
handled  rakes. 

A  small  blue  flame  appeared  at  the  vents  in  the  crown 
of  the  kiln,  which  increased  as  the  heat  became  more  in- 
tense. When  the  temperature  reached  a  certain  point  it 
became  a  white,  roaring  flame  several  feet  in  height,  having 
the  appearance  of  natural  gas,  burning  at  the  end  of  a  gas 
pipe.  As  one  vent  after  another  hurst  out  into  white  flame 
the  roar  of  the  chimney  resembled  the  sound  of  a  locomotive 
blowing  off  steam.  At  this  stage  of  the  baking  no  smoke 
came  from  the  chimney,  all  being  consumed  within. 

Before  starting  the  fire,  trial  pieces  of  clay  had  been 
inserted  through  the  vents  to  guide  the  kiln-burner  in  his 
work.  These  trial  pieces  were  made  of  strips  of  clay  about 
two  feet  in  length,  three  inches  broad  and  half  an  inch  thick, 
the  lower  end  having  been  dipped  in  the  lead  glaze.  These 
strips  reached  through  the  crown  of  the  kiln  and  rested  on 
the  top  of  the  outer  course  of  ware.  At  the  point  where 
the  white  flame  appeared,  the  potter  with  a  pair  of  tongs 
withdrew  one  of  these  strips  to  ascertain  wdnether  the  lead 


62  TULIP  WARE 

in  the  glaze  had  been  properly  melted.  Passing  from  one 
vent  to  another,  walking  on  top  of  the  wall  of  the  kiln,  he 
examined  each  piece  in  turn  to  ascertain  whether  the  ware 
was  "done."  If  his  inspection  were  satisfactory  he  allowed 
the  wood  to  burn  to  coals  and  then  walled  the  fire  places  up 
with  iron  plates,  or  with  brick,  as  the  case  might  be,  which 
were  made  perfectly  air-tight  by  plastering  every  crack  with 
clay. 

The  kiln  was  then  left  sealed  up  for  about  a  week,  at 
the  expiration  of  which  time  it  had  cooled  sufficiently  to 
allow  the  ware  to  be  removed.  In  ordinary  cases  thirty-six 
hours  were  required  to  bake  the  ware  and  about  three  cords 
of  wood  were  consumed  in  the  process. 


"^•3^ 


12.    DUCK  MOTIVE. 


V.    a    a 

■J  £  r. 


H  1  E 

g  *  I   5 


H  a  JS 


is:  c  - 

Z  £  u 

/.  -5  o 

—  x 


V.    Varieties  ot  Slip  Ware 

Red  Slip  on  a  White  Engobe — Chocolate-Colored 

Ware — Transfer  Sgraffito  Decoration — 

Pricked  Outlines  in  Sgraffito  Work — Decorations 

Produced  by  Molding 


CHAPTER  V. 

Varieties  of  Slip  Wake. 

In  rare  instances  the  ordinary  process  of  slip-painting 
was  reversed,  as  shown  in  a  curious  pan-shaped  dish  which 


14.   slip-decorated  dish. 

Red  Slip  Outlines  on   White   Engobe, 
Filled   in   with   Green   Glaze. 
Owned  by  Mr.   Edward  Russell  Jones. 

has  recently  been  discovered.     The  surface  of  the  red  pot- 

67 


68  TULIP  WARE 

tery  was  first  entirely  covered  with  a  coating  of  white  slip. 
The  designs  were  then  outlined  in  rich,  dark  red  slip  and 
filled  in  with  green  color  obtained  by  using  verdigris  or 
oxide  of  copper.  The  raised  red  slip  against  the  white 
ground  is  a  pleasing  variation  of  the  usual  method  of  em- 
ploying white  slip  on  a  red  ground. 

We  do  not  know  the  name  of  the  potter  who  executed 
this  unusual  example,  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  it 
was  made  in  the  same  section,  at  one  of  the  local  potteries. 

CHOCOLATE-COLORED  SLIP  WARE. 

In  the  collection  of  slip-decorated  ware  in  the  Penn- 
sylvania Museum  are  several  examples  of  a  rich  dark  brown 
or  chocolate  color,  probably  the  product  of  a  single  pottery, 
and  distinctly  different  in  appearance  from  the  ordinary  red 
ware  produced  in  eastern  Pennsylvania.  The  peculiar  color 
was  obtained  by  glazing  with  red  lead  to  which  manganese 
had  been  added.  In  the  majority  of  these  pieces  the  brown 
tint  did  not  extend  to  the  red  body  beneath,  but  in  one  in- 
stance the  clay  itself  had  also  been  similarly  colored  so  that 
the  body  and  glaze  are  of  the  same  dark  hue  throughout.  In 
all  of  these  pieces  the  ornamentation  has  been  traced  in  liquid 
slips  of  various  colors, — white,  green,  blue,  dark  brown  and 
olive,  in  feather-shaped  and  serpentine  devices.  Incised 
decorations  do  not  appear  to  have  been  attempted  on  this 
variety  of  clay,  for  the  reason,  perhaps,  that  their  effective- 
ness depended  on  the  transparency  of  the  glaze  to  bring 
out  the  bright  red  color  of  the  body,  while  the  opaque 
quality  of  the  manganese  glaze  would  entirely  destroy  this 
desired  effect,  leaving  instead  a  plain  surface  with  slightly 
depressed  and  indistinct  decorative  patterns  of  a  uniform 
dark  color. 

The  most  elaborate  example  of  this  character  in  the 
collection   is  a   large,    deep,   flat-bottomed    vegetable    dish, 


()/•   THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


with  broad,  horizontal  edge  or  marly  and  a  central  design 

of  a  tile-roofed  house,  at  one  side  of  which  is  a  porch  on 
which  the  figures  of  a  man  and  woman  are  shown,  in  the 
attitude  of  shaking  hands.  At  either  side  is  a  tree  laden 
with  enormous  apples,  which  are  represented  by  drop-  ol 
white  slip.     There  is  no  name  or  date  on  this  piece,  but  its 


15.    SLIP-TRACED    DEEP    DISH. 

Polychrome   Designs  on   Chocolate-Colored   Ground. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 

age  may  be  approximately  fixed  by  a  somewhat  similar  dish 
with  a  rude  slip-traced  house  in  the  center  and  the  date  1843 
beneath.  A  third  piece  of  this  variety  of  ware  has  for  the 
principal  decoration  a  spray  of  flowers,  while  a  fourth  is 
ornamented  with  a  slip-traced  design  of  a  cock  and  hen 
surrounded  by  a  Pennsylvania-German  inscription  in  brown 


?o  TULIP  WARE 

and  white  slip  and  the  date  1847.  All  of  these  pieces  are 
entirely  different  in  shape  from  the  typical  dishes  of  the 
Pennsylvania-German  potters,  having  a  horizontal  marginal 
ledge  and  a  deep  sunken  bowl  or  cavetto,  like  the  modern 
soup  plate,  and  while  undoubtedly  of  American  manufac- 
ture, they  reveal  the  influence  of  extraneous  art.  They 
closely  resemble,  both  in  the  color  of  the  glaze  and  the 
decorative  treatment,  the  imported  German  dish  shown  in 
illustration  3. 


TRANSFER    DECORATION. 

The  method  of  decorating  in  clay  by  taking  direct  im- 
pressions from  natural  objects,  such  as  leaves,  was  supposed 
to  have  been  first  employed  by  Mr.  John  G.  Low,  of  Chel- 
sea, Mass.,  in  1878,  at  the  Low  Art  Tile  Works.  This  was 
called  the  "Natural  Process."  The  object  to  be  reproduced 
on  a  tile  was  first  laid  upon  a  bed  of  powdered  clay  which 
had  been  dampened  to  make  it  adhere  under  pressure.  The 
leaf  was  then  forced  into  the  surface  of  the  clay  by  being 
placed  in  a  screw  press.  Over  this  was  spread  a  piece  of 
tissue  paper  on  which  was  piled  more  of  the  prepared  clay, 
which  was  a  second  time  subjected  to  great  pressure.  The 
two  parts  were  then  separated  and  the  paper  removed,  when 
the  exact  prints  of  the  two  sides  of  the  leaf  or  other  object 
were  obtained  in  relief  and  intaglio,  which  fitted  accurately 
together. 

This  idea  of  obtaining  impressions  from  natural  objects 
in  decorative  treatment,  however,  was  not  new,  as  it  had 
occurred  to  some  of  the  Pennsylvania-German  potters  fully 
a  century  before.  Early  in  the  19th  century  earthenware 
pie  plates  were  rhade  in  Montgomery  and  Bucks  counties, 
Pa.,  bearing  natural  outlines  of  the  leaves  of  flowers  and 
trees  which  were  produced  in  the  following  manner: 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


7i 


NATURAL   LEAF   IMPRESSIONS. 

A  leaf  from  a  maple  or  other  tree  was  first  allowed  to 
wilt  sufficiently  to  become  quite  limp.  It  was  then  moist- 
ened and  made  to  adhere  by  pressing  it  firmly  with  the 
fingers  on  the  unburned  ware.  An  engobe  of  white  slip 
was  then  spread  over  all  and  when  dry  the  leaf  was  removed 
An  application  of  lead  glaze  then  brought  out   the  design 


flfcW«/  ±0 


16.    SGRAFFITO    DISH. 

Natural  Leal  Decoration. 

Eastern    Pennsylvania,    1810. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 

clearly  in  a  deep  red  color  on  a  white  or  yellowish  ground. 
Sometimes  these  colors  were  reversed,  when  the  leaves  ap- 
peared in  white  against  a  red  ground.  To  secure  this  effect 
a  coating  of  white  clay  was  first  applied  to  the  dish,  then 


72  TULIP  WARE 

the  leaf  was  placed  upon  it  and  the  entire  surface  covered 
with  a  second  wash  of  red  slip  of  the  same  material  as  the 
body  of  the  ware.  After  removing  the  leaf  and  glazing  the 
piece  the  leaf  impressions  appeared  in  white  or  straw  color 
on  a  red  ground.  Such  pieces  were  usually  inscribed  in  the 
sgraffito  style.  Pieces  of  leaf-decorated  pottery  which  have 
been  discovered  bear  dates  ranging  from  about  1785  to  1835. 
A  good  example  of  this  variety  of  ware  is  a  dish  in  the 
Pennsylvania  Museum  bearing  date  1786  and  the  following 
couplet: 

"Deisa  Schiissel  ist  von  Orda  gamacht ; 
Von  sie  Zerbricht  der  Heffner  lacht." 

This  dish  is  of  earth  made ; 
When  it  breaks  the  potter  laughs. 

The  lettering  is  scratched  through  a  layer  of  white  clay  and 
the  leaf  and  flower-petal  design  in  the  center  is  in  red. 

Another  excellent  specimen  is  a  plate  dated  March  20, 
1810,  and  thus  inscribed,  in  rather  poor  script: 

"Fische,  Vogel  und  Forrellen  essen  gem  die  Haffner  Gsellen." 
Fish,  fowl  and  trout  the  journeyman  potter  enjovs. 

In  the  center  are  red  impressions  of  natural  leaves. 

The  same  process  was  occasionally  employed  for  trans- 
ferring pictures  or  figures  which  were  cut  out  of  paper,  such 
as  animals  and  other  patterns.  An  example  of  this  character 
is  embellished  with  a  silhouetted  figure  of  a  well-proportioned 
horse  as  the  central  design  and  a  smaller  device  at  the  side 
representing  a  double  eagle  and  heart.  These  appear  in 
chocolate  color  against  a  slightly  raised  background  of 
yellow  slip.  The  patterns  had  been  carefully  cut  out  of 
stiff  paper  and  laid  on  the  surface  of  a  coating  of  chocolate- 
colored  slip,  and  over  all  had  been  spread  a  layer  of  lighter 
colored  clay,  after  which  the  paper  design  had  been  re- 
moved.    This  process,  however,  was  not  considered  a  pro- 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  73 

fessional  one  and  was  very  rarely  resorted  to.  The  example 
described  above  bears  on  the  hack  the  name  of  the  maker 
and  date.  "Conrad  K.  Ranninger,  Montgomery  county. 
June  23,    [838  " 


17.    SGRAFFITO   TIE    PLATE. 

Eagle  Decoration. 

Eastern  Pennsylvania,  about  1830. 

In  the  Pennsylvania   Museum.   Philadelphia. 

PRICKED    DECORATION     IN    SGRAFFITO    WORK 

As  a  general  rule  slip-painted  and  scratched  decorative 
designs  were  drawn  off-hand,  but  occasionally  we  find  a  piece 
which  shows  that  the  decorator  availed  himself  of  certain 
helps  in  drawing  the  pattern  on  the  clay.     It  must  be  re- 


74  TULIP  WARE 

membered  that  each  mark  or  line  scratched  through  the 
thin  coating  of  white  slip  would  be  indelible  and  show  the 
red  clay  beneath,  so  that  it  was  important  that  no  errors  in 
drawing  should  be  made.  A  curious  example  of  sgraffito 
work,  showing  a  large  eagle  grasping  a  bundle  of  arrows  in 
his  talons,  indicates  that  the  design  was  first  drawn  on 
paper  and  then  spread  over  the  surface  of  the  plate  and  the 
outlines  pricked  through  the  paper  and  into  the  coated 
clay  with  a  blunt  pointed  instrument.  After  the  paper  pat- 
tern was  removed  the  lines,  indicated  by  the  dots,  were  com- 
pleted with  a  wooden  point. 

DECORATIONS   PRODUCED    BY   MOLDING. 

A  curious  variation  in  decorative  treatment  was  the 
molding  of  dishes  in  an  engraved  matrix.  The  ordinary 
circular  pie  plates  were  always  shaped  over  a  convex,  plainly 
curved  form,  but  some  half  dozen  dishes  which  have  re- 
cently come  to  light  indicate  the  employment  of  a  some- 
what more  elaborate  process.  These  pieces  are  octagonal 
in  form,  the  eight  flat  sides  sloping  inward  toward  the 
center.  They  are  about  eight  and  a  half  inches  in  diameter 
and  an  inch  and  a  quarter  in  depth.  The  ornamentation 
was  engraved  or  cut  in  the  surface  of  the  convex,  octagonal 
mold,  which  was  reversed  in  the  finished  dish,  standing  out 
boldly  in  relief.  The  entire  surface  was  covered  with  a  lead 
glaze  so  that  the  ground  and  reliefs  are  of  a  uniform  dark 
red  color.  While  these  pieces  were  new  and  fresh  the  dec- 
orative device  was  not  so  distinct  as  in  the  variously  colored 
slip  designs,  but  long  use  has  worn  away  the  surface  of  the 
glaze  on  the  raised  parts,  and  the  molded  design  has  been 
brought  out  more  clearly.  The  central  device  is  a  lily-shaped 
ornament,  probably  intended  for  the  tulip,  supported  on 
either  side  by  what  appears  to  be  a  cluster  of  grapes  and  a 
six-pointed  star.     Beneath,  in  a  rectangular  panel,  are  the 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM AX S 


75 


initials  (presumably  of  t he  maker)  I.  T.,  and  the  date  1794. 
The  eight  side  panels  contain  alternately  representations  of 
bunches  of  grapes  and  crossed  swords,  while  the  angles  of 
meeting  are  embossed  with  raised  lines  in  the  herring-bone 
pattern.  All  of  these  pieces  appear  to  have  been  formed  in 
the  same  mold,  such  as  was  formerly  used  in  casting  metal 


18.    OCTAGONAL    DISH. 
Molded  Relief  Decoration. 
Made  by   T.   T.. 
In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 

trays.  One  is  owned  by  Mr.  Henry  D.  Paxson,  of  Holicong, 
Bucks  county,  Pa.,  and  another  is  in  the  collection  of  the 
Pennsylvania  Museum.  We  cannot  with  any  degree  of 
positiveness  attribute  these  pieces  to  any  particular  pottery, 
but  it  is  probable  that  they  were  made  by  Jacob  Taney,  in 
Xockamixon  township.  Bucks  county. 

Molds  were  occasionally  used  in  shaping  dishes  of  other 
irregular  forms.     An  oval   tray,   nine  and  a  half  inches  in 


7f>  TULIP  WARE 

length  by  eight  in  width  and  one  and  three-quarters  in  depth 
was  evidently  fashioned  in  this  manner.  The  regularity  of  the 
sixteen  flutings  around  the  margin  indicates  that  the  piece 
was  not  formed  by  hand.  In  fact  the  sloping  and  cleanly 
cut  edge  shows  unmistakably  that  the  clay  had  been 
trimmed  close  to  the  base  of  the  mold  before  being  sepa- 
rated from  it,  the  convex  mold  being  lobed  in  form,  some- 
what like  the  matrix  used  for  shaping  the  old-fashioned, 
deep,  circular  cake-molds,  with  tube  running  through  the 
center.  The  decoration,  in  the  sgraffito  style,  consists  of  a 
floral  design  rising  from  a  vase.  Around  the  scalloped 
border  is  the  familiar  couplet: 

"Aus  der  erde  rhit  verstand  : — 
Macht  der  hefner  allerhand," 

and  the  date  "July  the  17th,  1823."  Over  all  is  a  brilliant 
lead  glaze  with  touches  of  green  color  at  regular  intervals. 
The  scratch  work  was  evidently  done  after  the  dish  had 
received  its  concave  shape,  as  the  lettering  and  underlying 
lines  have  been  carefully  applied  with  due  regard  to  the 
corrugations  and  waving  outlines  (see  illustration  64). 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  decorated  pieces  were 
made  exclusively  at  any  of  the  old  potteries  or  that  they 
even  constituted  a  considerable  proportion  of  the  product. - 
of  the  Pennsylvania-German  kilns.  On  the  contrary,  thou- 
sands of  plain  commercial  utensils  were  made  for  every  piece 
of  ornamental  ware  that  was  produced.  The  latter  were 
executed  during  odd  moments  and  leisure  hours  by  the 
proprietor  or  his  journeymen,  as  gifts  or  presentation  pieces 
for  household  decoration.  They  were  usually  designed  for 
some  friend,  sweetheart,  a  wife,  or  the  daughter,  or  mistress 
of  an  employer  and  they  were  occasionally  executed  to  fill 
a  special  order  from  some  well-to-do  patron.  Such  pieces 
were  highly  prized  and  carefully  preserved  from  one  gen- 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


7/ 


eration  to  another.  In  the  dwellings  of  their  possessors 
they  took  the  place  of  the  rare  plaques  and  costly  bric-a- 
brac  of  modern  homes.  The  associations  by  which  they 
were  surrounded  frequently  enhanced  their  value  in  the 
eyes  of  their  owners,  who  would  have  considered  it  a  sacri- 
lege to  permit  them  to  be  put  to  ordinary  uses.  This  ex- 
plains the  remarkably  perfect  condition  of  many  examples 
which  have  come  to  light  which,  although  a  hundred  years 
or  more  of  age,  are  still  as  fresh  and  perfect  in  appearance 
as  when  they  came  from  the  kiln. 


VI.     Decorative  Subjects  of 
The  Pennsvlvania-German   Potters 

Flowers — Birds — Animals — 
Human    Figures — Inscription- 


CHAPTER   VI. 

Decorative  Subjects  of  the 
i  'ennsylvania-l  herman    pi  (tters. 

FLOWERS. 

The  simplest   decorative  motive  employed   by   the  old 
Pennsylvania-German     potter     was     the     conventionalized 


i.i.     PENNSYLVANIA-GERMAN    PLATE 
Showing   Fuchsia   Motive. 
Made   by    David   Spinner,  about   1800. 
In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum.  Philadelphia. 

(lower  and  its  foliage.  Many  of  the  smaller  plates  and 
dishes  were  ornamented  with  nothing  but  an  outlined  flori- 
ated device, — a  single  blossom  and  a  few  leaves.     It  is  true 

81 


82  TULIP  WARE 

that  in  many  cases  no  specific  plant  was  meant  to  be  repre- 
sented, yet  on  a  majority  of  the  decorated  pieces  we  have 
no  difficulty  in  recognizing  at  least  two  familiar  forms,  the 
fuchsia  (Ohredroppen)  and  the  tulip.     The  former  was  held 
in  high  esteem  by  the  Germans  and  was  a  common  object 
in  the  gardens  surrounding  the  potteries  and  neighboring 
farm  houses.      Rev.   Hilderic   Friend,   in   his   "Flowers  and 
Flower   Lore,"   states   that    "The   fuchsia   in   Germany   has 
long  been  regarded  as  sacred,  since  it  is  one  of  the  first  signs 
of  the  returning  life  of  spring."    The  tulip,  however,  figured 
most   frequently.      Quoting  from   my   article   on    Inscribed 
Potterv  of  the  Pennsylvania  Germans,  in  the  New  England 
Magazine  of  March,  1895, — "This  was  a  favorite  flower  with 
the    old    German-Americans,    not    only    on    account    of    its 
beauty  and  characteristic  form,  and  the  ease  with  which  its 
simple  outlines  could  be  represented  in   slip-painting,   but 
because   of  the  associations   surrounding  it.     The   tulip,   a 
native  of  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean,  in  the  Levant,  or 
the  region  to  the  east  of  Italy,  extending  into  Turkey  and 
Persia,  is  said  to  have  been  brought  from  Constantinople 
to  Augsburg  by  Konrad  von  Gesner,  a  noted  botanist  and 
zoologist  of  Switzerland,  in  the  year   1559,  where  it  soon 
came  into  popular  favor.     In  the  seventeenth  century  the 
cultivation  of  this  plant  developed  in  Holland  to  such  an 
extent  that  it  became  one  of  the  most  remarkable  horticul- 
tural   manias   in    the   world's   history,    and    fabulous   prices 
were  frequently  paid  for  new  and  rare  varieties.     The  Tul- 
penwuth,  or  'tulip  madness;  extended  into  Germany  and  con- 
tinued to  rage  for  many  years.     The  German  potters  of  the 
eighteenth    century,    particularly    throughout    the    Rhenish 
Palatinate,  used  the  tulip  extensively  as  a  decorative  subject 
on  their  slip-ornamented  earthenware.     The  porcelain  man- 
ufacturers of  Saxony,  notably  at   Meissen,  also  painted  it, 
in  natural  colors,  on  their  finest  china,  and  it  still  continues 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


83 


to  be  employed  by  the  best  decorators  of  continental  fac 
tories,  being  especially  characteristic  of  the  Dresden  wares 
of  the  present  day.     .  .      It  is  remarkable  that  the  Per 

sian  name  of  the  tulip,  dulband,  should  have  been  retained 
through  nearly  three  and  a  half  centuries,  and  that  the  plant 
should  he  known  in  the  Pennsylvania  Germans  to-day  as  the 
Dullaban  " 


20.  .PENNSYLVANIA-GERMAN     PLATE 

Showing   Tulip    Motive. 
In  t!ie  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 


Until  a  few  years  ago  the  tulip  was  cultivated  exten- 
sively in  the  German  counties  of  Pennsylvania,  but  recently 
this  practice  has  fallen  somewhat  into  disuse. 

The  forget-me-not  was  also  occasionally  represented 
on  the  pottery  of  southeastern  Pennsylvania,  as  best  shown 
in  the  sgraffito  design  of  a  spherical  jar  from  the  old  Scholl 
pottery  in  Montgomery  county,  in  which  tiny  stamen-like 


*"Ohredroppen  unci  Dullebanen  sind  auf  der  Schussel." 
Fuchsias  and  tulips  are  on  the  dish. 


84  TULIP  WARE 

flowers  spring  from  a  large  five-petaled  blossom  (see  illus- 
tration 62).  The  Vergissmeinnicht  figured  frequently  among 
the  decorative  subjects  of  old  German  wares,  a  good  illus- 
tration being  seen  in  an  old  piece  of  Durlacher  faience  owned 
by  a  Baden  collector,  in  which  it  stands  as  the  pictorial 
representation  of  a  word  in  the  inscription,  "Wandel  auf 
(Rosen)  und  (Vergissmeinnicht),"  figures  of  roses  and  forget- 
me-nots  appearing  in  place  of  the  parenthesized  words. 

Other  garden  flowers  are  sometimes  to  be  found  on 
the  Pennsylvania  ware,  among  which  is  the  lily  of  the  valley, 
which  occurs  on  an  interesting  old  dish  in  the  collection 
of  the  Pennsylvania  Museum. 

One  of  the  striking  characteristics  of  the  German  peo- 
ple in  Pennsylvania,  which  has  clung  to  them  through  all 
the  years  which  have  elapsed  since  their  ancestors  left  the 
fatherland,  is  their  love  for  flowers.  Riehl,*  the  eminent 
antiquary  and  historian,  tells  us  that  all  through  the  Rhine 
country  the  people  delight  in  flowers,  but  nowhere  is  this 
trait  so  universal  as  in  the  Palatinate,  along  the  left  side 
of  the  river. 

BIRDS. 

Next  to  flowers  in  favor  with  the  old  German  decora- 
tors were  birds.  These  were  often  depicted  with  such  fidel- 
ity to  nature  that  we  can  readily  distinguish  the  species 
intended  to  be  represented. 

The  eagle  was  frequently  figured  on  the  wares  of  cer- 
tain potters,  sometimes  appearing  in  natural  attitudes,  but 
more  often  in  conventional  form,  as  the  Bird  of  Freedom, 
with  breastplate  or  shield  bearing  the  stars  and  stripes. 

The  turtledove  and  the  oriole  are  often  shown  in  the 
sgraffito  designs,  the  former  being  the  emblem  of  love. 

The  peacock  is  also  occasionally  found  on  some  of  the 


*Vide  Die  Pf'dlzcr.  p.  192. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  85 

old  ware.  This  fowl  was  raised  quite  extensively  in  the 
Pennsylvania-German  settlements,  as  elsewhere  in  the  East- 
ern States,  and  in  some  of  the  rural  districts  it  was  looked 
upon  as  a  weather  prophet,  its  discordant  cry  being  sup 
posed  to  indicate  the  approach  of  rain.*  Its  gorgeo 
plumage  was  used  for  mantel  decoration,  sometimes  being 
placed  in  an  earthen  jar,  and  was  also  made  into  pliant 
brooms  to  be  waved  across  the  dining  table  in  tlv  time.    For 


21.    PENNSYLVANIA-GERMAN    JAR 

Showing  Peacock  Motive. 
In    the    Smithsonian    Institution. 

ordinary  purposes  brushes  made  of  fringed  paper  were  in 
common  use,  but  the  peacock  broom  was  always  brought 
forth  on  state  occasions.  Window  and  door  screens  were  not 
then  in  use,  and  the  flies  which  attended  in  swarms  must 
be  driven  away.     This  custom,  however,  was  not  confined 


*"Wenn  der  Pohahn  kraht,  gibts  Regen,"- 
The  cry  of  the  peacock  presages  rain. 


86  TULIP  WARE 

to  the  German  district,  but  obtained  in  other  localities,  even 
down  to  a  recent  period. 

A  small  sgraffito  jar,  in  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  is 
a  good  example  of  peacock  decoration.  In  this  piece  no 
coloring  has  been  used  but  the  natural  tint  of  the  clays. 
Through  the  white  ground,  which  has  been  cut  away  to  form 
the  design,  the  red  of  the  under  clay  appears,  the  iridescent 
eyes  of  the  tail  plumes  of  the  bird  being  represented  by  a  red 
and  white  checker-board  effect.  No  date  appears  on  this 
piece,  but  the  workmanship  indicates  that  it  belongs  to  about 
the  period  of  1825. 

Other  examples  of  peacock  decoration  will  be  seen  in 
the  productions  of  Georg  Hiibener  (which  see). 

The  pelican  seems  to  have  been  sometimes  used  by  the 
Pennsylvania  Germans  as  a  decorative  subject  on  the  illumi- 
nated Handschriften,  and  occasionally  on  pottery.  Mr. 
Henry  C.  Mercer,  of  Doylestown,  Pa.,  in  his  "Survival  of 
the  Mediaeval  Art  of  Illuminative  Writing  among  the  Penn- 
sylvania Germans,"  reproduces  a  hand-colored  design  of  a 
mother  bird  in  the  act  of  piercing  her  breast  with  her  beak, 
while  three  young  birds  in  a  nest  receive  in  their  open 
mouths  the  blood  which  issues  from  the  wound.  The  peli- 
can is  often  figured  in  old  German  manuscripts  as  a  symbol 
of  maternal  devotion.  The  Pennsylvanians,  while  familiar 
with  the  fabled  proclivity  of  this  tropical  bird,  were  un- 
acquainted with  its  physical  peculiarities,  and  it  is  therefore 
represented  without  the  enormous  beak  and  pouch  which 
are  its  distinguishing  characteristics. 

The  duck  and  swan  are  other  bird  forms  which  are  seen 
in  ceramic  ornamentation.  Being  more  familiar  to  the  artist 
than  many  other  domestic  and  wild  fowl,  they  were  often 
admirably  drawn,  and  are  therefore  easily  recognizable. 

The  parrot  is  unmistakably  represented  on  at  least  two 
examples  of  sgraffito  ware  by  Andrew  Headman.     On  other 


OF  Tllli  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM. IX S 


87 


pieces,  supposed  to  have  boon  made  by  Benjamin  Bergey, 
the  heron  is  figured,  in  one  instance  holding  in  its  beak  a 
writhing  serpent  of  gigantic  size. 

In  slip-traced  designs  the  domestic  cock  and  lien  have 
been  occasionally  found.  It  is  safe  to  say,  however,  that  in 
many  instances  where  hud  forms  occur  in  decorative  design, 
no  particular  bird  was  intended. 


22.     PENNSYLVANIA-GERMAN   DISH 

Showing    Horse    Motive. 

Made  by  Benjamin    Bergey,   1838. 

In    the    Pennsylvania    Museum,    Philadelphia. 


ANIMALS. 

Among  the  mammals  represented  on  the  Tulpenwaare, 
or  tulip-decorated  pottery,  are  the  deer,  rabbit,  lion,  dog 
and  horse.  The  latter  figures  most  frequently,  but  it  is 
generally  the  least  meritorious  of  all  the  animal  creations 
of   the   Pennsylvania-German    artists.      It   is   comparatively 


88  TULIP  WARE 

easy  to  outline  a  rabbit,  with  tolerable  accuracy,  but  only 
a  practiced  hand  can  delineate  the  graceful  curves  of  the 
more  noble  companion  of  man.  In  the  designs  which  have 
been  attributed  to  Benjamin  Bergey  we  find  the  best  rep- 
resentations of  the  horse. 

Nondescript  animals,  sometimes  found  on  sgraffito 
pieces,  suggest  the  conventional  creatures  of  heraldry  or 
mythology.  One  of  these,  on  a  small  plate  made  by  Fried- 
rich  Hildebrand,  which  is  shown  elsewhere  (illustration  75), 
is  a  curious  combination  of  fish  and  mammal. 

Tolerably  well-drawn  serpents  and  fishes  appear  as  dec- 
orative details  on  both  sgraffito  and  slip-painted  wares.  A 
plate  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  R.  T.  H.  Halsey,  of  New 
York,  with  central  design  of  the  tulip  plant,  shows  four 
fishes  in  the  border,  which  alternate  with  the  same  number 
of  ornamental  figures.  The  best  example  of  fish  decoration 
yet  discovered  in  this  section  is  a  large  pan-shaped  dish 
having  a  slip-traced  fish  as  the  central  device  (see  illustra- 
tion 82). 

HUMAN  FIGURES. 

Men  and  women  are  frequently  portrayed  on  the  more 
elaborate  pieces  of  slip-decorated  ware,  but  in  his  treatment 
of  the  human  form  the  ceramic  artist  disclosed  his  weakest 
point.  His  drawings  are  exceedingly  crude  and  childish, 
yet  we  must  not  measure  his  work  by  too  high  a  standard, 
because  it  was  merely  the  spontaneous  expression  of  latent 
talent,  rather  than  the  result  of  technical  training.  He 
knew  no  rules  of  procedure  and  his  hand  was  untrammeled 
by  the  limitations  of  any  school  of  art.  For  all  this  his 
homely  productions  once  commanded  the  unbounded  admi- 
ration of  his  friends  and  patrons,  and  it  is  really  remarkable 
that  he  should  have  obtained  such  good  color  effects  in 
costumes  and  draperies  as  are  sometimes  seen  in  these  rude 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM  AX  S 


89 


delineations,  considering  the  limited  facilities  which  he  had 
at  his  command.  David  Spinner  was  perhaps  the  most 
successful  of  the  old  German  potters  in  this  direction  and  in 
his  "Lady  Okie"  design,  in  which  the  pose  of  the  female 
figure  is  rather  graceful  and  pleasing,  we  find  him  at  his  best 
(see  illustration  39).  Another  of  Spinner's  productions 
shows  a  man  and  woman  in  Colonial  costumes. 


13      PENNSYLVANIA-GERMAN    PIE   PLATE 

With  Human  Figures. 

Made  by  David  Spinner,  about  1800. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 


INSCRIPTIONS. 

Last,  but  by  no  means  least,  the  marginal  inscriptions 
which  occur  on  much  of  this  pottery  are  a  characteristic 
feature  and  add  greatly  to  the  decorative  effect.  Inscribed 
pieces  are.  as  a  rule,  more  attractive  than  those  which  possess 
only  pictorial  devices.  Without  these  inscriptions  the  ware 
would  possess  but  little  interest,  either  for  the  ceramist  or 
the  historian. 


VII.     The  Tulip  in   Decoration 

On  Illuminative  Writing — 

Iron  Stove  Plates — Tombstones — On  the  Exterior 

Walls  of  Houses 


CHAPTER   VII. 
The  Tulip  in  Decoration. 

As  we  have  already  seen,  the  tulip  figured  conspicuously 
as  a  decorative  motive  on  the  earthenware  of  the  Pennsyl- 
vania-German potters.  <  >n  the  majority  of  their  ornamental 
pieces  this  flower  will  be  found  in  natural  or  conventionalized 
forms,  usually  recognizable  and  frequently  true  to  nature. 

Not  only  did  the  tulip  figure  on  the  pottery  of  these 
people,  but  it  was  also  painted  on  their  certificates  of  birth 
or  baptism  (Taufschein),  of  marriage  (Eheschein),  of  death 
idschein);  on  their  illuminated  hymn  books,  rewards  of 
merit,  book  markers  and  manuscript  "samplers"  or  writing 
copies  (Vorschrift).  .Many  of  the  local  preachers  ami  school 
teachers  in  the  German  settlements  were  skillful  with  the  pen 
and  brush  and  were  accustomed  to  engross  and  paint  the  title 
pages  of  religious  books  and  the  documents  which  were  de- 
signed  to  record  important  family  events,  and  to  teach  the 
art  of  Fractur,  or  illuminative  German  handwriting.*  The 
elaborate  design  on  the  following  page  is  an  illuminated 
paper  "sampler"  dated  1804.  in  the  Pennsylvania  Museum. 

So,  too,  was  the  tulip  motive  employed  in  some  of  the 
other  arts  as  practised  by  these  people.  At  the  old  Durham 
furnace  in  Bucks  county;  the  Warwick  furnace  in  Chester 
county,  operated  by  John  Potts:  the  iron  works  of  Baron 
William  Henry  Stiegel  at  Manheim,  Lancaster  county,  and 


*See   "The   Survival    of   the    Mediaeval  Art   of    Illuminative  Writing 
Among  the  Pennsylvania  Germans,"  by  Henry  C.  Mercer. 

93 


94 


TULIP  WARE 


other  establishments,  decorative  iron  stove  plates  were  made 
extensively  between  1740  and  1790,  many  of  which  were  cast 
with  raised  designs  illustrative  of  scriptural  incidents  and 
other  subjects,  in  which  the  tulip  is  generally  found.  Among 
these  we  find  the  stories  of  Cain  and  Abel;  Joseph  and  the 
wife  of  Potiphar;  Adam  and  Eve;  the  Miracle  of  Cana,  and 
David  and  Goliath.*  One  of  the  plates,  with  conventional- 
ized tulip  design  (illustration  25)  bears  the  date  1763  and  the 


MVj.mon9,isrf  Grta^u,,,,..^  .Wl  -•w<%^  ^,!„|  fc,„,„  ff,[U|f 


Ji/ffiWJW, 


24.    ILLUMINATED    "SAMPLER,' 

name  of  the  maker,  Thomas  Rutter.  with  a  portion  of  a  Ger- 
man inscription  that  was  completed  on  the  companion  plate 
which  formed  the  opposite  side  of  the  stove. 

In  the  old  burial  grounds  of  eastern  Pennsylvania  will 
also  be  found  many  tombstones  on  which  the  tulip  design  is 
carved,  in  conjunction  with  weeping  willow  trees,  guardian 
angels  and  earlv'dates.     In  the  "Indian  Field"  adjoining  an 


*Henry  C.  Mercer,  of  Doylestown,  Pa.,  has  published  a  most  interest- 
ing monograph  on  this  subject,  entitled  "The  Decorated  Stove  Plates  of 
the  Pennsylvania  Germans." 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


95 


old  Lutheran  Church  in  Montgomery  county,  a  mile  or  two 
west  of  Sellersville,  Pa.,  the  last  resting  places  of  many  of  the 
early  settlers  are  marked  with  grave  stones  so  embellished. 

This  custom  of  placing  decorative  designs  and  inscrip 
tions  on  various  objects  extended  also  to  the  ornamentation 
of  houses.     On   some  of  the  early  structures  thai   are  still 
standing  in  the  rural  districts  of  eastern  Pennsylvania  may 
be  seen  date  -tones  which  frequently  hear  carvings  of  the 


[RON    STOVE    i 
By  Thomas   Rutter, 


tulip  or  other  designs.  (  )scar  Kuhns.  in  "The  German  and 
Swiss  Settlements  of  Colonial  Pennsylvania,"  calls  atten- 
tion to  the  quaint  inscriptions  which  adorn  many  of  the  old 
stone  houses,  a  custom  which  was  brought  from  the  Palati- 
nate. These  are  usually  of  the  nature  of  proverbs  or  senti- 
ments of  a  religious  character,  often  quoted  from  Bible  or 
hymn  book.  Such  inscriptions  are  usually  found  engraved 
high  up  on  the  gable  walls.  One  of  these,  found  on  a  large 
iron  plate  which  had  been  walled  in  on  the  side  of  a  log  house 
in  Albany  township.  Bucks  county,  built  in  the  year  1743.  is 
as  follows : 


96  TULIP  WARE 

"Was  nicht  zu  Gottes  Ehr' 
Aus  Glauben  geht  ist  Siinde ; 
Merck  auf,  O  theures  Hertz, 
Verliere  keine  Stunde. 
Die  iiberkluge  Welt 
Versteht  doch  keine  Waaren, 
Sie  sucht  und  findet  Koth 
Und  last  die  Perle  fahren." 

Another  inscription  found  on  a  stone  house  which  was 
built  in  West  Cocalico  township,  Lancaster  county,  in  the 
year  1759,  consists  of  this  pious  sentiment: 

"Gott  gesegne  dieses  Haus, 
Und  alle  was  da  gehet  ein  und  aus ; 
Gott  gesegne  alle  sampt, 
Und  dazu  das  ganze  Land." 

According  to  this  writer  one  of  the  earliest  house  inscrip- 
tions of  this  character  known  in  the  Palatinate  bears  the  date 
1622;  this  curious  custom  of  inscribing  the  walls  of  houses 
obtained  also  in  some  parts  of  Switzerland. 


VIII.    Earthenware  Utensils 
of    the    Pennsylvania   Germans 

Articles  made  by  the 

'  .<  i  m. in-  American  Potters — Dates  found  on  the  V. 
Pics  and  Pic  Plates 


CHAPTER   VIII. 
Earthenware  Utensils  of  the  Pennsylvania  Germans. 

The  following  are  among  the  forms  of  utensils  and  other 
objects  produced  at  the  old  German  potteries  in  eastern 
Pennsylvania. 

Cooking  Pots.  With  lids  or  without.  Sometimes  with 
one,  usually  with  two  handles.  Glazed  inside  and  occasion- 
ally both  inside  and  out. 

Apple  Butter  Pots  (Epfel  Buther  llaffa.  or  Lodt  Varrik 
Haft  a).  Heavy  collar  around  rim.  Glazed  inside,  unglazed 
outside. 

Flower   Pots  (Bluma  Haifa).     Usuall)    separate,  occa 
sionally  with  pedestals.     Sometimes  with  crimped  or  pie- 
crust edges. 

Vinegar  or  Molasses  Jugs.     Like  modern  forms. 

Jars.  Spherical  or  cylindrical,  usually  with  lids.  With 
or  without  handles. 

Coffee  Pots,  Sugar  Bowls  and  Cream  Pitchers.  Usually 
glazed  inside  and  out. 

Mugs  or  Liquid  Measures.  Large,  straight,  cylindrical 
vessels  with  one  handle,  occasionally  tumbler  shape  without 
handles. 

Vegetable  or  Meat  Dishes.  Large  circular  pans,  usually 
with  sloping  stands  and  flat  bases.  Occasionally  the  outer 
edge  flared  off  at  an  angle,  something  like  a  modern  soup 
plate.  In  rare  instances  the  sides  sloped  inward  and  down- 
ward to  a  narrow  flat  bottom.  This  form  of  dish  was  among 
the  oldest. 


ioo  TULIP  WARE 

Pie  Plates  (Boi-Schissel  or  Poi  Schissel).  Curved  shallow 
discs  with  notched  edge. 

Shaving  Basins.  Shaped  like  an  ordinary  soup  plate 
with  curved  piece  cut  out  of  the  rim  to  fit  the  neck  of  the 
person  shaving. 

Flower  Holders  or  Vases.  With  radiating  tubes  in 
which  flowers  were  inserted. 

Toys.  Figures  of  animals,  birds,  diminutive  jugs,  drink- 
ing and  eating  utensils,  whistles,  etc. 

Among  the  productions  of  the  old  potteries  are  also 
found  tea  canisters,  earthen  barrels  for  holding  water,  ink 
stands,  sand  shakers,  shaving  cups,  fancy  dishes  or  trays, 
stove  foot-rests,  cake  and  jelly  molds,  puzzle  jugs,  bowls, 
oval  platters,  soup  dishes,  cake  plates,  pitchers,  tobacco  pipes, 
spittoons,  tobacco  jars,  drain  pipes  and  roofing  tiles.  A  small 
red  and  yellow  slip-decorated  horse,  with  a  pannier  or  ring 
at  each  side  for  holding  ink  and  sand  boxes,  may  be  seen  in 
the  collection  of  the  Bucks  County  Historical  Society,  at 
Doylestown,  Pa. 

While  it  is  probable  that  these  productions  extended 
continuously  over  the  period  from  about  1720  to  1850, 
dated  examples  of  many  of  the  years  between  have  not  yet 
been  discovered.  The  following  dates  have  been  found  in- 
scribed on  pieces,  principally  dishes,  which  have  come  to  the 
notice  of  the  writer: 

1733,  1762,  1767,  1769  (2),  1773  (3),  1776,  1785  (4),  1786 
(4),  1789  (3),  1791,1792  (2),  1793  (4),  1794  (2),  1796(4),  1797 
(2),  1798  (2),  1799,  1800  (3),  1801  (2),  1802,  1804,  1808  (2), 
1809(3),  1810(3),  iSn  (5)-  1812  (2),  1813,  1814(2),  1816(3), 
1819,  1822,  1823  (2),  1826  (5),  1827,  1828  (4),  1830,  1831  (4), 
1832  (2),  1833,  1838  (3),  1843  (2),  1845  (5).  1846  (3),  1847 
(2),  1849  (3)- 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  101 

PIES    AND    PIE    PLATES. 

It  does  not  appear  to  be  known  exactly  where  that  pecu- 
liar composition  of  fruit  and  pastry  originated  which  is  kn 
as  the  pie,  for  the  encyclopaedias  are  strangely  sileiu  on  this 
subject,  but  it  is  certain  that  the  art  of  pie-making  flourished 
ami  >ng  our  ancestors  as  early  as  the  seventeenth  century.  It 
is  now  generally  conceded  that  the  pie  is  of  American  inven- 
tion. As  early  as  1641*  pies  were  mentioned  by  writers: 
"This  poor  wilderness  hath  not  only  equalized  England  in 
food,  but  goes  beyond  it  in  some  places  *  *  *  apples, 
pears  and  quince  tarts  instead  of  their  former  Pumpkin  Pies." 

Henry  C.  .Mercer,  in  his  "Tools  of  the  Nation  Maker." 
states  that  "The  pie  of  the  United  States  evidently  devel- 
oped here  about  1750  and  entirely  a  product  of  the  bake 
oven  since  it  could  not  have  been  cooked  often  in  the  open 
fire  or  in  Dutch  ovens." 

With  the  advent  of  pies  came  the  necessity  for  pie  plates 
in  which  to  make  and  bake  them,  and  thus  a  new  form  of 
utensil,  apparently  unknown  in  any  other  part  of  the  world, 
was  developed  in  the  United  States.  The  typical  form  of  the 
pie  plate  is  a  hollowed  circular  disc,  notched  around  the  edge, 
an  unbroken  curve  without  flattened  base  or  projecting 
rim.  The  shape  is  characteristic,  and  unsuited  for  any  other 
use  than  that  for  which  it  was  designed.  The  American  fruit- 
pie  plate  is  not  found  in  England  or  on  the  Continent. 

Among  the  earliest  clay  utensils  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Germans  the  typical  pie  plate  was  not  found,  but  it  was  intro- 
duced at  a  later  period,  toward  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury, and  soon  afterwards  came  into  general  use.  The  oldest 
examples  of  pie  plates  which  have  come  to  my  notice  bear 
the  date  1785,  and  it  is  not  probable  that  they  were  made 
much  previous  to  that  date.     All  the  dishes  in  the  Pennsyl- 


♦Johnson's  "Wonder  Working  Providence"  ;  p.  174, 


102  TULIP  WARE 

vania  Museum  collection  which  bear  earlier  dates  are  of  other 
forms,  and,  doubtless,  served  for  other  purposes,  such  as  for 
ir.r;.ts  or  vegetables. 

The  art  of  pie-making  was  undoubtedly  acquired  by  the 
Germans  from  their  American  neighbors,  and  the  former 
were  not  slow  to  adopt  it  as  their  own.  The  fruits  and  vege- 
tables which  the  fertile  soil  of  their  farms  produced  in  such 
great  abundance  furnished  material  for  pies  of  every  descrip- 
tion at  a  trifling  cost.  The  Pennsylvania-German  housewives 
usually  kept  a  goodly  supply  of  these  confections  in  the  house 
and  served  them  at  every  meal.  There  were  apple,  quince, 
peach,  plum,  cherry,  blackberry,  whortleberry  (huckleberry), 
raspberry  and  strawberry  pies,  and  those  made  of  squash, 
pumpkins  and  other  vegetables  and  even  the  molasses  pie 
was  a  well-known  dish  in  certain  sections. 

Harriet  Beecher  Stcwe.  in  "Oldtown  Folks," says:  "The 
pie  is  an  English  institution,  which,  planted  on  American  soil, 
forthwith  ran  rampant  and  burst  forth  into  an  untold  variety 
of  genera  and  species."  She  refers,  of  course,  to  the  meat 
or  flesh  pie  of  Great  Britain.  It  was  reserved  for  Americans 
to  invent  the  fruit,  or  sweetened,  pastry  which  we  know  by 
that  name.  Even  the  mince  pie,  which  is  a  combination  of 
both,  must  be  considered,  in  its  present  form,  an  indigenous 
American  product. 


IX.      Slip  Potters  of  Eastern   Pennsylvania 


Eighteenth   Century 


Joseph  Smith — Christian  Klinker — Abraham  Stout — 
Georg  Hubener — Rudolf  Drach — John  Leidy 


CHAPTER    IX. 

Slip  Potters  of  Eastern  Pennsylvania. 

Eigii  i  ih\  in  Cen  ruRY. 

The  local  potteries  of  the  <  rerman  settlements  in  eastern 
Pennsylvania  seem  to  have  been  confined  almost  entirely  to 
the  counties  of  Montgomery  and  Bucks.  This  centralization 
of  the  pottery  industry  was  probably  the  result  of  the  locali- 
zation of  the  deposits  of  suitable  clays.  Mr.  A.  B.  Haring, 
the  son  of  one  of  the  old  potters,  states  that  a  large  number 
of  these  small  establishments  were  situated  in  what  is  gener- 
ally known  as  the  Nockamixon  Swamp,  in  the  upper  part  of 
Eiucks  county,  and  that  he  can  remember  when  there  were 
en  potteries  within  two  miles  of  each  other.  This  swamp 
covers  an  area  of  about  ten  miles  in  length  by  five  in  width 
and  lies  in  the  townships  of  Nockamixon,  Bridgeton  and 
Tinicum.  The  soil  is  a  clayey  loam,  which  is  underlaid  with 
a  good  quality  of  potters'  clay,  admirably  suited  to  the  manu- 
facture of  red  earthenware.  Between  the  years  1780  and 
[880  the  following  named  persons  operated  potteries  in  this 
section: 

Jacob  Sigafoos.  Jacob  Kintner,  Andrew  Greaser,  Abra- 
ham Weaver,  John  Haring,  Charles  and  Hugh  Kintner. 
David  Haring,  Joseph  Hanvick,  Jacob  Taney  and  Son,  John 
Herstine,  Sr.,  John  and  Patrick  McEntee,  Michael  McEntee. 
Jacob  and  Philip  Scheetz,  John  Herstine,  Jr.,  John  Mondeau. 
Jared  R.  Haring,  Peter  Herstine  and  Brothers,  Cornelius 
Herstine.  John  G.  Rieley  and  David  Herstine. 

"05 


106  TULIP  WARE 

Some  of  the  journeymen  potters,  who  at  various  times 
worked  in  this  district,  were: 

Samuel  McCammon,  John  Bigley,  Simon  Singer,  Wil- 
liam Smith,  Samuel  Weaver,  Jacob  Stier,  Gilbert  Stier,  Philip 
Stier,  William  Stier,  Mathias  Moyer,  J.  R.  Taney,  William 
Stackhouse,  William  Michel,  Jacob  Mills,  Edwin  Mondeau, 
David  Mondeau,  Solomon  Herstine. 

The  Jacob  Kintner  pottery  was  probably  established 
about  1780,  and  continued  in  operation  until  about  1840. 
During  this  period  a  considerable  amount  of  decorated  pot- 
tery was  made  there.  The  Herstine  Pottery  was  operated 
by  three  generations — Cornelius,  Daniel  and  David — at  a 
somewhat  later  date.  The  business  that  was  once  so  thriving 
in  this  locality  has  become  almost  extinct.  At  present  only 
one  pottery  is  known  to  be  in  operation,  and  that  only  period- 
ically, for  the  production  of  the  most  common  grades  of  utili- 
tarian earthenware. 

Other  Bucks  county  potters  were  Conrad  Mumbauer,  in 
Haycock  township,  about  1760,  who  was  succeeded  by  John 
Mondeau,  Simon  Singer  (from  Baden,  Germany),  and  Milton 
Singer;  Abraham  or  Isaac  Stout,  about  1760;  Joseph  Smith, 
of  Wrightstown  township,  in  1763,  succeeded  by  Thomas 
Smith;  Christian  Klinker,  at  Bucksville,  about  1772;  Rudolf 
Drach,  in  Bedminster  township,  1792;  I.  T.  (initials  which 
appear  on  numerous  dishes),  1794;  David  Spinner,  Milford 
township,  about  1800;  John  and  Peter  Headman  (more  re- 
cently Mr.  Watson's);  Andrew  Headman,  1808,  and  Charles 
Headman,  1849,  ar>d  George  Diehl,  1832,  all  of  Rock  Hill 
township;  Philip  Kline,  about  1809;  Jacob  Nizer  (or  Neisser), 
at  Carversville,  in  1827;  Richard  Moore,  who  was  making 
ware  in  1828  in  an  old  building  erected  between  1780  and 
1790;  Helfrich  Toomey,  in  Plumstead  township,  about  1830; 
Joseph  Johnson,  at  Attleboro'  (Langhorne),  about  1832; 
Christian  Miller,  New  Britain;  Franz  Schramm,  Plumstead 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  107 

township,  1846  to  1850; Bartleman,  Flumstead  town- 
ship, and  Moore  &  Kinsey,  of  Ouakertown. 

Among  the  German  potters  in  Montgomery  county 
were  the  following: 

Georg  Hubener,  1785  to  1798;  John  Leidy,  Franconia 
township,  1790  to  1S00;  Johannes  Xeesz,  at  Tyler's  Port, 
from  about  1800  to  1830;  John  Nase,  about   [830  to  1850; 

Cope,  Frederick  township;  Henry  Roudebuth.  181 1 

to  1816;  Samuel  Troxel  (originally  Trachsel).  Upper  Han- 
over township,  1823  to  1833;  Michael  Scholl,  Jacob  Scholl 
and  Friedrich  Hildebrand,  at  Tyler's  Port,  previous  to  1830; 
Benjamin  Bergey,  1830  to  1840;  Conrad  K.  Ranninger,  1838; 

Bitting  and Rode,  near  Pennsburg,  in  1848; 

Graber,  Upper  Hanover  township,  in  1848. 

In  Lehigh  county  there  were  at  one  time  several  Ger- 
man potteries.  Henry  Albert,  in  1816,  and  Samuel  Horn,  in 
1826,  were  making  slip-decorated  ware  at  Allentown.  Pa. 
In  Berks  county,  Heinrich  Stofflet  was  manufacturing 
sgraffito  ware  in  the  year  1814. 

Early  in  the  eighteenth  century  clay  roofing  tiles  were 
made  quite  extensively  in  several  of  the  eastern  counties  of 
Pennsylvania  by  German  tilers,  and  at  many  of  the  old  pot- 
teries they  were  produced  in  conjunction  with  earthenware 
vessels.  The  general  form  of  these  tiles  was  rectangular,  the 
lower  end  being  somewhat  rounded,  and  on  the  under  flat 
side  was  a  knob  or  projection  to  catch  on  the  cross-pieces  of 
the  roof.  They  were  all  of  a  standard  size,  about  thirteen  or 
fourteen  inches  in  length  by  six  or  seven  in  width  and  five- 
eighths  of  an  inch  in  thickness.  The  upper  side  was  usually 
grooved  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  off  the  rain.  Such  tiles 
are  known  to  have  been  made  by  one  Hvister,  in  Upper  Sal- 
ford  township,  Montgomery  county,  as  early  as  1735;  by  the 
Moravians,  at  Bethlehem,  Pa.,  about  1740,  and  in  various 
parts  of  Lancaster  and  Bucks  counties  at  the  same  period,  or 


io8  TULIP  WARE 

earlier.  The  process  employed  in  their  manufacture  was  prac- 
tically the  same  as  that  practised  at  Wurtzburg,  Germany,  as 
observed  by  Prof.  Edward  S.  Morse  some  years  ago.  Some 
of  the  old  buildings  are  yet  standing,  in  the  counties  named, 
with  their  original  tile  coverings. 

JOSEPH    SMITH. 

About  the  year  1763  a  pottery  was  established  in 
Wrightstown  township,  Bucks  county,  Pa.,  by  Joseph  Smith, 
who,  while  not  a  German  himself,  appears  to  have  adopted 
some  of  the  methods  of  his  neighboring  craftsmen.  It  is 
known  that  he  made  decorated  earthenware  in  the  sgraffito 
style,  several  good  examples  of  which  are  yet  in  existence. 
A  square  brown-glazed  tea-caddy  about  six  inches  in  height 
is  owned  by  Mr.  James  Terry,  of  New  Haven,  Conn.,  on  the 
face  of  which  is  etched  through  a  coating  of  yellow  slip  a  rude 
design  of  a  fruit  tree  with  two  birds  at  the  base,  and  the  in- 
scription "Esther  Smith,  Her  Tea  Cannister,  September  6, 
1767,"  and  in  the  lower  right-hand  corner  the  name  of  the 
maker,  "Smith."  Joseph  Smith,  who  was  born  in  1721,  was 
married  in  1743,  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  this  piece  may 
have  been  made  as  a  birthday  present  for  a  daughter,  named 
for  his  sister  Esther,  who  is  known  to  have  been  married  to 
Thomas  Lacey  in  1748  (illustration  27). 

Another  example  from  the  Smith  pottery  is  an  earthen- 
ware water  keg  of  black  glazed  red  ware,  sixteen  inches  in 
height,  which  bears  on  the  base  the  name  of  J.  Smith  and 
date  1799.  This  piece  is  owned  by  Mr.  J.  S. 
Williams,  of  New  Hope,  Bucks  county,  Pa. 
\A^Trry^JJp  1  Joseph  Smith  was  succeeded  by  Thomas 

^  7  y)  J      Smith,  probably  a  son.     A  granddaughter  of 
'6    mark  of        tne  kitter.  Dr.  Lettie  A.  Smith,  of  Newtown, 
joseph  smith.       pa     remembers  seeing  in  her  younger  days 
some  decorated  plates  belonging  to  her  grandmother,  which 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM  AX S 


109 


were  inscribed  with  lines  of  poetry  and  dales  and  bore  the 
name  of  Thomas  Smith,  the  maker.  The  writer  has  been 
informed  that  Thomas  Paxson,  of  Buckingham,  once  owned 


27.     SGRAFFITO  TEA    CANISTER. 

Made  by  Joseph  Smith.   1767. 
Owned  by  Mr.  James  Terry,  New  Haven.  Conn. 

a  dish  that  came  from  the  Smith  pottery,  on  which  was  incised 
the  following  lines: 

"Here  is  health  to  the  man  who  has  a  half  Joe* 
And  has  the  heart  to  lend  it ; 
Let  the  dogs  take  him  who  has  a  whole  Joe 
And  hasn't  the  heart  to  spend  it." 

*A  gold  coin  which  was  current  in  the  rural  districts  a  hundred  years  ago. 


no 


TULIP  WARE 


In  the  collection  of  the  Pennsylvania  Museum  is  a  fine 
sgraffito  dish,  fifteen  inches  in  diameter,  which  bears  the  date 
1762.  The  central  portion  is  embellished  with  a  conventional 
floral  design  in  red  and  green  glazes,  and  around  the  margin 
is  the  English  inscription: 

"Xot  be  Ashamed  I  Advise  thee  Most 
if  one  Learneth  thee  what  Thou  not  Knowest 
the  Ingenious  is  Accounted  Brave 
But  the  Clumsey  None  Desire  to  have  1762." 


29.    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 

Bird,  Tulip  and  Heart  Decoration. 

Probably  by  Joseph  Smith,  1773. 

Owned    by    Mr.    George    H.    Danner. 


There  is  reason  for  believing  that  this  interesting  exam- 
ple of  beautiful  coloring  was  produced  at  the  Smith  pottery. 
This  supposition  is  strengthened  by  the  fact  that  the  words 
are  in  English,  as  few  if  any  of  the  German  potters  of  that 


28.      Sgraffito  Dish,   made  in 

Eastern   Pennsylvania  in    1762. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,  Philadelphia. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  in 

period  used  anything  but  German  in  decorating  their  ware-. 
The  date  shows  that  the  piece  was  made  about  the  time 
when  Joseph  Smith  first  began  operations,  and  it  is  probable 
that  the  monogram  at  the  right  was  intended  for  J.  S.  or  T.  S. 
(see  colored  plate). 

Mr.  George  H.  Danner.  of  Manheim,  Pa.,  is  the  pos- 
sessor of  a  pie  plate  which  is  also  probably  from  the  old 
Smith  pottery.  The  ornamentation  consists  of  a  bird,  tulips 
and  a  large  heart,  on  the  latter  of  which  is  scratched  the  date 
1773  and  the  words. 

"This  dish  and  heart 
Shall  never  part." 

The  lettering  in  this  piece,  as  in  the  others  attributed  to  tin- 
same  pottery,  are  written  in  English  script,  while  the  German 
potters  appear  to  have  always  employed  the  German  text  in 
their  ceramic  inscriptions. 

CHRISTIAN    KLINKER. 

One  of  the  pioneer  potters  of  Bucks  county.  Pa.,  was 
Christian  Klinker.  who  is  supposed  to  have  come  from 
Germany.  An  earthenware  jar.  in  the  collection  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania Museum,  covered  with  colored  slips  in  raised  floral 
designs,  bears  on  the  bottom  his  initials,  C.  K.,  and  the  d 
of  fabrication,  1773  (see  illustration  8).  According  to  an  old 
deed  formerly  in  possession  of  the  late  William  J.  Buck,  of 
Jenkintown,  Pa..  Christian  Klinker  was  an  "'earthen  potter 
maker"  in  1792,  near  Bucksville.  in  the  same  county,  where 
he  had  resided  for  at  least  five  years  previous  to  that  date. 
He  died  in  the  following  year. 

STOUT. 

Abraham  or  Isaac  Stout  had  a  pottery  in  Bucks  county. 
Pa.,  situated  probably  between  Gardenville  and  Point  Pleas- 
ant, about  the  year  1775.     Nothing  is  known  of  the  history 


ii2  TULIP  WARE 

of  this  establishment  and  but  little  regarding  the  ware  pro- 
duced there.  One  piece  seems  to  be  pretty  well  authenti- 
cated— a  slip-decorated  dish  a  foot  in  diameter  and  two  and 
a  half  inches  in  depth,  now  in  possession  of  Miss  Laura 
Swartzlander,  of  Yardley,  Pa.  The  center  of  the  dish  is  em- 
bellished with  the  conventional  tulip,  and  at  the  base  are  the 
letters  S.  S.  Family  tradition  has  it  that  it  was  a  piece  be- 
longing to  a  dinner  set  that  was  made  for  the  daughter  of  the 
old  potter,  Salome  Stout,  great-grandmother  of  the  present 
owner. 

GEORG   HUBENER. 

Among  the  most  elaborately  decorated  and  inscribed 
earthenware  of  the  Pennsylvania-German  settlements  was 
that  produced  by  one  Georg  Hubener.  We  do  not  know  the 
exact  site  of  his  pottery,  but  it  is  believed  to  have  been  some- 
where in  the  upper  part  of  Montgomery  county,  where  the 
name  was  at  one  time  somewhat  common.  The  principal 
characteristics  of  Hiibener's  pieces  are  two  circles  of  lettering, 
instead  of  one,  and  the  inscribed  names  of  persons  for  whom 
they  were  intended,  the  majority  of  examples  attributed  to 
him  being  thus  distinguished.  A  large  circular  meat  or  vege- 
table dish  shows  in  the  center  an  incised  device  of  a  two- 
headed  bird,  which  at  first  sight  might  be  taken  for  the  royal 
double  eagle  in  the  arms  of  Prussia,  but  it  is  in  reality  in- 
tended to  represent  a  pair  of  doves  with  united  bodies  form- 
ing a  single  heart,  typical  of  love  and  union.  In  the  space 
above  is  the  date  of  manufacture,  1786,  while  at  the  sides  are 
large  tulips  and  the  initials  of  the  maker,  G.  H.  Around  the 
rim  is  incised  the  following: 

"Cadarina  Raederin  Ihre  Schiissel, — 
Aus  der  ehrt  mit  verstant 
Macht  der  Haefner  aller  Hand." 

Catherine  Raeder,  her  dish, — 
Out  of  earth  with  understanding 
The  potter  makes  everything. 


30.     SGRAFFITO   DISH. 

United  Doves  and  Tulips. 

By  Georg  Hiibener,  1786. 

In  the   Pennsylvania  Museum,  Philadelphia. 


ii4  TULIP  WARE 

This  is  one  of  the  most  carefully  executed  examples  of 
sgraffito  ware  which  has  come  to  light  in  Pennsylvania,  the 
designs  having  been  boldly  carved  through  the  layer  of  white 
slip  into  the  red  clay  beneath,  while  splotches  of  dark  green 
in  the  glaze  relieve  the  monotony  of  red  and  white.  Close 
examination  will  show  a  network  of  crackling  over  the  entire 
ground,  purely  accidental,  of  course,  but  fully  equal  in  regu- 
larity and  fine  effect  to  some  of  the  Oriental  crackle  ware 
which  is  so  highly  prized  by  the  connoisseur  (see  full  page 
plate). 

Another  pan-shaped  dish  of  similar  shape  and  size  is 
ornamented  with  even  greater  care  and  detail.  The  decora- 
tions consist  of  a  central  circle  inclosing  a  tulip  plant  with 
two  large  flowers,  surmounted  by  a  peacock  preening  his 
abundant  plumes.  Outside  of  this  are  three  concentric  bands, 
on  the  outer  of  which  is  the  name  of  the  recipient, — 

"Mathalena  Jungin ;  ihr  Schussel," 

followed  by  this  favorite  legend: 

"Die  Schussel  ist  von  Ert  gemacht 
Wann  sie  verbricht  der  Haefner  lacht 
Dartim  nempt  sie  in  acht." 

Madalena  Young;  her  dish. 

The  dish  is  made  of  earth, 

When  it  breaks  the  potter  laughs, 

Therefore  take  care  of  it  (in  acht  nehmen). 

The  second  circle  is  filled  with  ornaments  representing 
tulip  blooms  and  miniature  trees,  arranged  alternately,  while 
the  inner  band  bears  the  date  of  fabrication,  1789,  and  the 
following  inscribed  sentiment: 

"Blummen  Mollen  ist  gemein 
Aber  den  geruch  zugeben  vermach  nur  Gott  allein." 

To  paint  (malen)  flowers  is  common. 

But  God  alone  is  able  (verm'dgen )  to  give  fragrance. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


"5 


While  there  is  no  name  of  maker  on  the  latter  piece,  it 
is  readily  recognized  as  the  work  of  Hubener,  when  com- 
pared with  the  one  which  follows.  This  is  a  dish  of  identical 
form,  fourteen  inches  in   diameter,   hearins:  in  the   central 


l^iM\ 


31.     SGRAFFITO    MEAT    DISH 

Peacock  and  Tulip   Decoration. 

Made  by  Georg  Hubener.  1789. 

In  the  Pennsylvania   Museum.    Philadelphia. 


space  the  same  figure  of  a  peacock,  evidently  the  work  of  the 
same  artist.  There  are  two  inscriptions  arranged  in  concen- 
tric circles.  The  outer  is  a  quotation  from  Christ's  sermon 
on  the  mount,  as  found  in  Matthew  v.  6: 

"Selig  sin  die  da  hungert  un  durst  nach  der  gerechtigkeit. 
Den  sie  sollen  satt  werden." 


n6 


TULIP  WARE 


Blessed  are  they  that  hunger  and  thirst  after  righteous- 
ness for  they  shall  be  filled. 

This  is  followed  by  the  full  name  of  the  maker  and  the  date, — 

"Die  Schiisel  ist  gemach  von  Georg  Hiibener.  Marz  2  1792." 

The  dish  is  made  by  George  Hiibener.  March  2,  1792. 

In  the  inner  ring  is  inscribed  a  singular  combination  of  senti- 
ments: 


32.    SGRAFFITO    DISH. 
Peacock  and  Tulip   Decoration. 
Made  by  Georg  Hiibener,    1792. 
Owned  by  Mrs.  Sarah  B.  Harris. 

'Es  win  gewisz  kein  wey.  diesen  vogel  Kriegen, 
Weil  die  dullebahnen.  sich  iiber  in  biegen : 
Das  graut  ist  wohl  gesaltzen 
Aber  iibel  geschmaltzen 

her  Koch." 

Surely  no  hawk  (weihe)  will  seize  this  bird 
Because  the  tulips  bend  over  it. 
The  kraut  (cabbage  )  is  well  pickled 
but  badly  greased. 
Master  Cook. 


01   THE  i  \A  117 

J 
A  portion  of  the    ame  im  1  ription  and  pi  nd  tulip 

de<  oration  are  found  on  a  similar  dish  in  1 1 
1I1  date  0  r  14,  178 

A  fifth  identified  pii 

\\ .  hi  der  1 1 

ird. 

[I      ill 
t(  nded  for  presentation  piei  1 

ome  fair  re<  ipient.     'I  hi  that    1 1 

opei  »d  of  thii  •  • 

from  17X-,  to  1; 

o,  111. 

lop 

the 

of  a   b;  '  dip  and 

ing  word 

"rudolf  di  ner  in  hadmir 

which  may  be  trs 

ster  .  Pa.),  179-'  '     General  '.'. 

II.  1 1  rian,  of  I  Pa.,  info 

lolf  Drai  hO  potter  in  I 

ship  0      In   •, 


n8 


TULIP  WARE 


Thomas  and  John  Penn  conveyed  300  acres  of  land  in  Bed- 
minster  to  one  Rudolph  Traugh.  At  the  latter's  death,  in 
1770,  this  was  divided  between  his  two  sons,  Henry  and 
Adam.  In  1787  Henry  conveyed  his  share  to  his  son  Ru- 
dolph, who  was  evidently  the  maker  of  the  above  described 
dish,  in  1792.  The  German  spelling  of  the  name,  as  found  in 
old  deeds,  is  Drach. 


33.    SGRAFFITO  DISH. 

Made  by  Rudolf  Drach,  1792. 

In  the    Field   Columbian    Museum,    Chicago. 


JOHN   LEIDY. 

In  the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  century  John  Leidy 
operated  a  pottery  in  Franconia  township,  near  Souderton, 
Montgomery  county,  Pa.  He  made  both  slip-traced  and 
sgraffito  wares,  which  were  among  the  best  of  the  kind  pro- 
duced in  America  at  that  period.  Not  far  from  the  spot 
where  his  pottery  once  stood  two  fine  examples  of  his  handi- 
work were  discovered,  a  few  years  ago,  in  an  old  farm-house, 
where  they  bad  graced  the  top  of  an  ancient  "highboy"  for 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


no. 


well-nigh  a  hundred  years.  The  owner,  an  old  lady  of  ninety, 
had  come  into  possession  of  them  when  a  child,  and  for  up- 
wards of  three-quarters  of  a  century  these  souvenirs  had 
been  carefully  treasured.     All  offers  to  purchase  were  at  first 


34.     SGRAFFITO    DISH. 

Tulip    Decoration. 

Made  by  John  Leidy,  1796. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,  Philadelphia. 

firmly  declined,  but  before  the  year  was  out  the  untiring  zeal 
of  the  collector  had  prevailed.  These  pieces  were  evidently 
intended  for  vegetable  or  meat  dishes.     They  are  circular  in 


120 


TULIP  WARE 


form  (for  oblong  platters  were  practically  unknown  among 
the  products  of  the  Pennsylvania-German  potteries)  and 
measure  fourteen  inches  in  diameter.  One,  with  incised  or 
scored  designs,  is  two  and  a  half  inches  in  depth,  with  flat 


35.    SLIP-DECORATED  DISH. 

Tulip    Decoration    in    White    Slip. 

Made  by  John  Leidy,  1797. 

In  the  Pennsylvania   Museum,   Philadelphia. 

base  and  sloping  sides.     In  the  center  is  the  so  frequently 
used  tulip,  while  around  the  margin  are  inscribed  the  date 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  121 

of  manufacture.   November  9,    1796,  and   the  old   German 
couplet: 

"Wer  etwas  will  verschwiegen  haben 
I  >er  derf  es  seiner  frau  nicht  sagen." 

He  who  would  have  something  secret 
Dare  (_durfe'n  I  not  tell  it  to  his  wife. 

The  other  is  two  inches  in  depth  and  bears  on  the  d< 
lich  red  ground  of  the  body  a  traced  design  of  conventional-: 
ized  tulips,   in  green,   blue   and   white   slips,    with   the   date, 
October,  1797,  and  the  legend, 

"Lieber  will  ich  ledig  leben 
Als  der  Frau  die  Hosen  geben." 

Rather  \\>  mid  I  single  live 
Than  the  wife  the  breeches  give. 

A  modification  of  the  last  quoted  distich,  as  found  on 
another  dish,  runs  thus: 

"Ich  will  als  lieber  letig  leben 
Als  der  frau  die  hosen  geben, 
den  24  jiun,  1800." 

Two  other  dishes  in  the  Pennsylvania  Museum  collec- 
tion have  been  identified  as  having  come  from  the  Leidy  pot- 
tery. One  of  these  is  a  piece  of  similar  shape  and  size,  with 
a  central  device  of  bird  and  tulips.    The  marginal  inscription 

ii  as  follows: 

"Es  ist  kein  voglein  so  vergesen 
Es  ruth  ein  stiindlein  nach  dem  essen 

Geschehen  den  20  ichsten  Nof ember  1796." 

No  bird  forgets  to  rest  (ruht)  a  short  hour  after  eating. 
Done  the  20  eighth  (  achsten  )  November  1796  (see  illustration  10). 


I  22 


TULIP  WARE 


The  second  example  is  decorated  with  large  slip-painted 
star-shaped  flowers  on  a  bright  red  ground,  and  the  inscrip- 
tion— 

"Gliick  oder  ungliick  ist  alle  morgen  unser  friihstuck 
1796,  18  Agust." 

Luck  or  misfortune  is  every  morning  our  breakfast 
August  18,  1796. 


36.    SLIP-DECORATED    DISH. 

Tulip  Decoration  in  White  Slip. 

Made  by  John  Leidy,  1800. 

Owned  by  Mr.   William  A.   Cooper. 


This  couplet  was  a  favorite  one  with  many  of  the  old 
potters,  and  occurs  on  a  tulip-decorated,  slip-traced  dish 
owned  by  Mr.  William  A.  Cooper,  of  Conshohocken,  Pa.,  and 
believed  to  have  been  made  at  the  Leidy  pottery.    The  circle 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  123 

at  the  bottom,  marking  the  end  of  the  inscription,  stands  for 
the  year  1S00. 

John  Leidy  was  horn  in  Franconia  township,  on  March 
780,  and  was  therefore  only  about  sixteen  years  of  age 
when  the  earlier  of  these  pieces  were  made.  His  father,  Jacob 
Leidy,  owned  a  tannery  in  the  neighborhood,  and  after  John 
gave  np  the  potter's  trade  he  carried  on  the  tanning  busii 
until  his  death,  which  occurred  on  September  22,  1838. 
Joseph  Groff  took  the  old  pottery  and  operated  it  for  some 
time  before  it  was  abandoned. 

The  name  of  John  Leidy's  firsl  wife  was  Maria  <  Iroff, 
was  born  October  21,  1785,  and  died  August  27,  1S14.  He 
afterwards  married  Elizabeth  Singmaster,  who  was  born 
\.pril23,  [783,  and  died  July  29,  1849.  Several  of  life  grand- 
children are  still  living,  but  no  trace  of  the  <>M  pottery  re- 
mains. 


X.       Slip   Potters  of   Eastern    Pennsylvania 
Early  Nineteenth  Centun 

David  Spinner — Johannes  Neesz — John  Nase — 
John  and  Peter  Headman — Andrew  and  Charles  Headman- 
Philip   KlilM — Michael  and  Jacob  Scholl  — 
Ihnry  Roudebuth— Heinrich  Stofflet—  Samuel  Troxel— 
David  Haring— Jared  R.  Haring— Benjamin  Bergey 
Abraham  Weaver — Friedrich    Hildebrand— 
( ieorge  Diehl 


CHAPTER  X. 

Slit  Potters  of  Eastern  Pennsylvania. 
Early   Nineteenth  Century. 

i)  win  SPINNER. 

Among  the  foremost  potters  of  Bucks  county.  Pa.,  was 
David  Spinner.  We  have  not  been  able  to  learn  when  his 
pottery  was  established,  but  it  must  have  been  in  existence 
previous  to  the  beginning  of  the  century  which  has  jusl 
come  to  a  close,  since  authenticated  examples  of  his  ware 
are  known  which  bear  dates  as  early  as  1801.  The  old  pot 
tery  was  situated  on  Willow  Creek,  in  Milford  township, 
near  the  line  of  Lehigh  county,  on  Spinner's  farm.  David 
Spinner  was  born  in  this  country  on  May  id.  1758,  hi^ 
father.  Ulrich  Spinner,  having  come  from  Zurich.  Switzer- 
land in  1739,  to  Bucks  county,  where  he  took  up  about  400 
acres  of  land.  David  was  considered  quite  an  artist  by  his 
contemporaries  and  decorated  the  ware  with  his  own  hand. 
He  possessed  a  marked  ability  for  off-hand  sketching  that 
exceeded  the  artistic  attainments  of  the  neighboring  potters 
and  he  frequently  placed  his  name  beneath  his  designs  on 
plates  and  other  pieces.  It  would  appear  that  he  continued 
the  manufacture  until  the  close  of  his  life,  since  his  grand- 
daughter, Mrs.  Elvina  S.  Dickenshied,  possessed  a  piece  of 
his  ware  dated  1811,  the  year  of  his  death.  The  Spinner 
family  was  among  the  most  intelligent  and  prominent  in 
that  section  and  for  many  years  the  potter  rilled  the  office 
of  Justice  of  the  Peace.      General  F.  E.  Spinner,  treasurer 

127 


128  TULIP  WARE 

of  the  United  States  from  1861  to  1875,  whose  striking  sig- 
nature on  the  paper  currency  will  be  remembered  by  many, 
was  a  member  of  the  same  family.  He  was  the  first  to  give 
employment  to  women  in  any  of  the  departments  of  the 
government,  and  recently  a  heroic  statue  has  been  erected 
to  his  memory  by  the  women  employes  in  Washington. 


37.    SIGNED   SGRAFFITO    PIE   PLATE. 
By   David   Spinner,  about  1800. 

A  number  of  signed  pieces  of  David  Spinner's  work  are 
extant,  the  most  characteristic  being  embellished  with 
figures  of  gay  cavaliers,  of  mounted  horsemen,  brilliantly 
attired  dames  and  hunting  scenes.  Indeed,  these  quaint 
etchings  were  among  the  most  interesting  of  any  produced 
by  the  Pennsylvania-German  potters,  being  full  of  spirit 
and  action.     One  shows  two  riders,  vis-a-vis,  beneath  which 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


129 


is  inscribed  "David  Spinner  his  Make.''  and  a  second  bears 
the  representation  of  a  horse  race  and  the  words  "David 
Spinner  Potter,"  beneath,  while  above  the  head  of  one 
rider,  as  though  issuing  from  his  mouth,  is  written  "go 
for  a  half  a  Joe,"  the  latter  word  being  the  name  of  a  gold 
coin  in  nsc  at  that  time,  an  abbreviation  of  "Johannes."  a 
Portuguese  piece,  which  was  equivalent  to  about  fourteen 
dollars  in  the  currency  of  this  country. 


js.    SIGNED   SGRAFFITO    PIE    PLATE. 
By   David  Spinner,   about    1800. 

Numerous  unsigned  plates  have  been  identified  as  the 
work  of  the  same  potter  by  the  marked  similarity  of  the 
drawing  and  certain  peculiarities  of  style.  A  horse  and 
female  rider,  well  drawn  (considering  the  period  and  the  con- 
dition of  the  art  in  that  locality),  shows  his  best  style.  The 
design  is  labeled   "Lady   Okie,"   probably   a   nickname   for 


130 


TULIP  WARE 


one  of  his  friends,  since  there  was  no  aristocracy  among  the 
plain  people  of  that  section.  The  rider  appears  in  a  pale 
green  gown,  mounted  on  a  dark  red  horse.  In  this  example 
the  grooves  formed  by  the  tool  in  cutting  away  the  white 
surface  of  the  clay,  to  bring  out  the  darker  color  beneath, 
are  distinctly  visible. 


39.    SGRAFFITO   PIE    PLATE. 

"Lady  Okie." 

By  David  Spinner,  about  1800. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,  Philadelphia. 

On  another  piece  we  find  a  "Deer's  Chase,"  showing 
in  the  center  a  red  stag  and  two  baying  hounds,  one  brindled 
or  striped,  the  other  white,  while  a  horse  is  just  coming  into 
view  across  the  side  of  the  plate. 

The  next  design  represents  a  lady  on  a  red  mount,  at- 
tended by  a  Continental  officer  on  a  piebald  charger.      A 


132 


TULIP  WARE 


green  tree  to  the  right  adds  variety  to  the  coloring,  while 
figures  of  miniature  hearts  in  the  border  lend  a  sentimental 
suggestiveness  to  the  scene. 

Some  of  these  artistic  efforts,  while  complete  in  them- 
selves, could  be  combined  to  form  a  connected  scene.  Two 
of  the  very  plates  described  were  so  intended,  for  Mrs. 
Dickenshied  has  informed  the  writer  that  they  always  stood 
together  on  the  mantel  of  the  old  home,  where  they  were 
preserved  for  many  years.  By  covering  the  forepart  of  the 
horse  on  the  deer  plate  with  the  corresponding  portion  of 


42.    TWO   SGRAFFITO    PIE  PLATES 
Showing  continuous  Scene  of  a  Deer  Chase. 
In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 


the  lady's  steed  in  the  other  piece,  the  representation  of  an 
old-time  hunt  was  obtained.  This  is  an  interesting  illus- 
tration of  a  curious  conceit,  and  it  is  remarkable  that  the 
two  parts  of  the  design  should  be  preserved,  and  in  such 
perfect  condition,  after  the  lapse  of  a  century. 

Of  particular  interest  are  two  plates  with  figures  of 
Continental   soldiers  in    gaily-colored   uniforms,   red,   green 


s   i" 


0  "  £  - 

—  —   c 

!-  .2  a.2 

«  ein  c 

... 

<  "S  "O  .£ 

«  u  5  | 

7.     0  ;: 
>,  - 

n  - 


\<fe 


>H*. 


<  •£  =2  ■= 

r  E  2  - 

~  rt  rt    = 

""  -  u"    — 


O  S  Q 

r.  - 


134  TULIP  WARE 

and  yellow.  One  shows  a  pair  of  musicians, — a  drummer 
and  fifer,  and  we  almost  instinctively  look  for  the  title 
"Yankee  Doodle."  The  other  portrays  two  warriors  stand- 
ing with  their  muskets  at  shoulder  arms,  while  above  is 
scratched  the  old-time  word  of  command,  "'Sholder  Fire- 
lock." At  either  side  in  these  twin  plates  is  the  characteris- 
tic representation  of  the  flowers  of  the  fuchsia. 

An  amusing  anecdote  of  the  old  potter  has  descended  in 
the  family.  Mr.  Spinner  had  among  his  apprentices  at  one 
time  a  negro  boy  who  was  much  addicted  to  swearing.  One 
day,  while  carrying  some  pots  upstairs  he  began  to  give 
vent  to  his  profanity,  when  the  proprietor,  thinking  to  break 
him  of  the  objectionable  habit,  suddenly  appearing,  gave 
him  a  kick,  and  boy  and  crockery  rolled  to  the  bottom  in 
a  confused  mass.  From  that  day  on  the  apprentice  was 
never  heard  to  utter  an  oath  in  the  presence  of  the  master. 

We  have  been  particularly  fortunate  in  finding  so  large 

a  number  of  authenticated  examples  of  the  work  of  David 

Spinner.     Although  of  German  parentage  he  was  a  good 

English    scholar   and    conducted    his    correspondence    with 

equal  facility  in  either  language.     The  few  words  inscribed 

on  the  majority  of  his  pieces  which   have  been   identified 

were  written  in  English.     Several  examples  of  his  sgraffito 

ware  are  known,  however,  which  are  inscribed  in  German 

words  and  characters.    In  one  of  these  a  lady  in  old-fashioned 

flower-decorated  gown  and  stays,  is  represented  in  the  act 

of  addressing  a  Continental  officer.     From  her  mouth  issues 

this  sentiment: 

"Du  bist  mir  ein  lieber  man 
So  bald  ich  dich  gesehen  hann." 

Thou  wert  to  me  a  lovely  man 
As  soon  as  I  had  seen  thee. 

The  gentleman,  in  gorgeous  apparel,  stands  in  an  easy, 
but  bored,  attitude  with  one  hand  thrust  into  his  pocket  and 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS         135 

the  other  raised  to  his  military  hat  in  acknowledgment  of  the 
compliment.  In  the  border  of  the  plate  may  be  seen  the 
same  suspended  hearts  which  occur  in  other  pieces  by  the 
same  maker  (see  Frontispiece). 


45.    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 

Colonial  Trooper. 

By  David  Spinner,  about   1800. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 

A  mounted  soldier  wearing  a  squirrel  tail  cap,  sugges- 
tive of  the  uniform  of  the  old  Philadelphia  Troop  of  Light 
Horse,  adopted  in  1774,  is  in  Spinner's  most  characteristic 
style,  but  probably  the  most  carefully  executed  example  of 
his  scratched  work  is  seen  on  a  pie  plate  embellished  with 
the  figures  of  a  man  and  woman  in  Colonial  costumes  (illus- 
tration 23). 


136  TULIP  W A  RE 

Slip-painted  ware  was  also  made  to  some  extent  at  the 
same  pottery,  but  the  designs  which  are  found  on  it  are  of 
a  simple  character,  usually  consisting  of  conventionalized 
flowers,  crudely  drawn.  We  have  seen,  in  the  possession 
of  members  of  the  Spinner  family,  several  pieces  of  this  kind, 
which  are  poorly  decorated  with  coarse  tracings  of  what 
appear  to  be  the  large  rose-like  blossoms  of  the  peony  or 
what  were  possibly  intended  for  the  dahlia. 

Of  the  ordinary  ware  produced  by  Spinner,  several  ex- 
amples survive.  One  of  these,  procured  from  a  grand- 
daughter, is  a  double  water  bottle,  covered  with  a  streaked 
and  mottled  red  and  brown  glaze  (see  illustration  69). 

It  will  be  noticed  in  the  pieces  from  the  Spinner  pottery 
here  figured  that  the  tulip  is  not  found.  In  this  respect  they 
differ  from  the  wares  of  the  majority  of  the  Pennsylvania- 
German  potters.  The  fuchsia,  however,  appears  in  many  of 
them. 

David  Spinner  died  on  the  16th  of  November,  181 1, 
and  the  pottery  was  closed  forever.  To-day  there  is  not  a 
vestige  of  the  building  standing,  but  fragments  of  earthen- 
ware are  occasionally  plowed  up  on  the  site  of  the  old  kiln. 

JOHANNES   NEESZ. 

Among  the  most  prominent  of  these  early  makers  of 
decorated  earthenware  was  Johannes  Neesz  (sometimes 
written  Johann  Xesz,  and  so  spelled  on  his  gravestone),  who 
was  born  April  14,  1775,  and  died  October  27,  1867,  aged 
ninety-two  years.  The  Neesz  pottery  was  situated  near  a 
little  hamlet  in  Montgomery  county,  Pa.,  known  as  Tyler's 
Port,  and  was  erected  sometime  previous  to  1800.  It  was 
an  exception  to  the  general  rule,  as  it  stood  in  a  field  back 
of  his  residence  a  few  hundred  yards,  instead  of  forming  a 
portion  of  it.     It  was  a  more  pretentious  establishment  than 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  137 

any  of  its  kind  in  that  section,  but  at  the  present  time  noth- 
ing can  be  seen  of  it  but  the  crumbling  debris  of  some  of  tin- 
walls  and  a  hollow  in  the  ground  where  once  stood  the  old 

kiln. 


46.    JOHANNES   NEESZ,    TOTTER. 
1  April  14.  17  I  let.  27,  1S67. 

Tt  is  said  that  Johannes  Neesz  learned  his  trade  at  an 
old  pottery  near  Spinnerstown,  not  far  from  Tyler's  Port. 
This  was  in  all  probability  the  David  Spinner  establishment, 
as  we  know  of  no  other  pottery  that  existed  in  that  neigh- 
borhood. This  supposition  is  strengthened  by  the  marked 
resemblance  in  the  decorative  work  of  the  wares  produced 
by  the  two  potters,  which  is  particularly  evident  in  the  draw- 
ing of  the  horses  and  human  figures.     It  is  more  than  prob- 


138  TULIP  WARE 

able  that  Johannes  Neesz  learned  the  art  of  sgraffito  embel- 
lishment from  David  Spinner. 

Mr.  Neesz  appears  to  have  been  a  man  of  strong  per- 
sonality, progressive  in  his  art,  and  highly  respected 
throughout  the  community  in  which  he  lived.  He  was  an 
active  member  of  the  Lutheran  church,  and  his  grave  may 
be  seen  in  the  old  Indian  field,  adjoining  his  place  of  wor- 
ship, about  three  miles  west  of  Sellersville,  Pa.,  surrounded 
by  the  tombstones  of  other  worthy  members  of  the  congre- 
gation, with  their  quaint  carvings  of  chubby  angels,  weeping 
willows  and  great  overhanging  tulips, — the  favorite  flower 
of  these  simple-hearted  people,  which  is  so  often  found  upon 
their  pottery. 

We  do  not  know  when  Johannes  Neesz  commenced 
potting.  The  earliest  dated  example  of  his  work  which  we 
have  discovered  was  produced  in  the  year  1805,  but  it  is 
probable  that  he  had  then  been  making  decorated  ware  for 
some  time.  Many  interesting  stories  are  told  of  him,  with 
much  relish,  by  his  descendants  who  reside  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  old  pottery.  The  following  was  related  to 
the  writer  during  a  visit  to  one  of  his  surviving  grandsons: 

"Some  ninety  years  ago  the  Lutheran  minister  of  the 
district  invited  Mr.  Neesz  to  dinner.  It  was  customary  in 
those  days  to  serve  the  midday  meal  at  twelve  o'clock,  and 
the  potter  was  on  hand  promptly  at  noon,  but  was  kept 
waiting  nearly  until  two  o'clock  before  the  meal  was  ready. 
During  this  visit  the  Dominie  gave  him  an  order  for  a  set  of 
plates,  to  be  made  with  certain  pious  sentiments  inscribed 
upon  them.  Sometime  afterward,  when  the  plates  were 
finished  and  delivered,  the  minister  was  much  amused  to 
discover  an  extra  one  in  the  lot,  on  which  had  been  written 
a  distich,  suggesting  that  when  a  man  asks  another  to  din- 
ner he  should  not  keep  his  hungry  guest  waiting  so  long." 
This  story  was  firmly  believed  by  the  various  members  of 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM AN S 


139 


the  family,  but  no  one  could  say  what  fate  had  befallen  the 
extra  dish,  nor  had  any  of  them  ever  seen  it.  Singularly 
enough,  the  writer  happened  afterward  to  hear  of  an  old 
plate  in  the  possession  of  a  German  family,  the  description 
of  which  led  him  to  believe  it  to  be  the  identical  piece  which 


47.    SGRAFFITO    PIE   PLATE. 

Made    by    Johannes    Ncesz,    in    1812. 
In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 

had  figured  in  the  anecdote,  and  on  gaining  possession  of  it 
later,  all  doubt  on  this  point  was  dispelled,  as  the  inscription 
on  it  was  as  follows: 

"Ich  bin  noch  nie  gewest 
Wo  man  so  spat  du  mittag  est, 
Ao  im  jahr  181.2." 

which  may  be  translated: 

I  have  never  been  in  a  place 

Where  people  eat  their  dinner  (mittagessen)  so  late, 
Anno  in  the  vear  1812. 


140  TULIP  WARE 

The  accompanying  illustration  shows  this  piece,  which 
possesses  a  special  interest  on  account  of  its  history.  It  is 
an  example  of  sgraffito  work  with  designs  incised  through 
white  slip.  On  the  upper  portion  is  the  representation  of  a 
rabbit,  while  beneath  are  suggestions  of  ducks, — toothsome 
reminders  of  the  belated  meal.  The  identity  of  this  piece 
has  been  positively  fixed  by  the  aid  of  a  similar  example, 
previously  procured  by  the  writer,  which  bears  the  same 
date,  1812,  and  the  name  of  Johannes  Neesz,  the  maker. 
The  same  hand  had  decorated  both  pieces,  and  each  has 
the  same  characteristic,  coarse  aquatic  foliage,  the  latter, 
however,  having  a  large  swan  in  the  center,  instead  of  a 
rabbit.  The  inscription  on  the  latter  seems  to  prove  con- 
clusively that  it  was  one  of  the  original  pieces  ordered  by 
the  minister: 

"Lieber  Yatter  in  Himmel  reich. 
Was  du  mir  gibst  das  es  Ich  gleich, 
Johannes  Neesz,  Ao  1812." 

Dear  Father  in  Heaven 

What  Thou  givest  me  I  eat  (esse)  immediately 
(i.e.,  without  question). 

1 1  is  rather  a  curious  coincidence  that  these  two  piece> 
should  have  been  brought  together  again  from  distant  points 
after  the  lapse  of  more  than  eighty  years.  Both  examples 
may  be  seen  in  the  collection  of  the  Pennsylvania  Museum, 
Philadelphia. 

During  the  past  ten  years  the  writer  has  gathered  to- 
gether a  most  interesting  series  of  pie  plates  that  were 
made  at  the  Neesz  pottery,  evidently  by  the  same  artist, 
all  bearing  a  similar  central  design  of  a  mounted  Con- 
tinental soldier,  supposed  to  have  originally  been  in- 
tended to  represent  General  George  Washington.  The 
idea  was  probably  suggested  by  an  old  print  which  was 
at  one  time  a  familiar  wall  piece  in  the  dwellings  of  the 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


141 


Pennsylvania  Germans.  The  ceramic  design  was.  doubtless, 
inspired  by  the  death  of  the  nation's  great  hero,  and  may 
have  appeared  soon  after  that  melancholy  event.  The  oldest 
examples  that  have  been  discovered  bear  the  date  1805,  but 


lS      SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE 
Showing  General  Washington  on  Horseback. 

Made  by  Johannes   Neesz,   1805. 
In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,  Philadelphia. 

as  the  same  device  continued  to  be  reproduced  until  the 
middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  (the  latest  one  being  dated 
1849),  there  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  this  was  the  earliest 
one  to  be  made.     The  inscription  which  accompanied  the 


142  TULIP  WARE 

original  design  probably  bore  some  relation  to  the  subject, 
but  as  replicas  came  to  be  issued  from  time  to  time,  a 
gradual  change  took  place  in  the  wording,  and  eventually, 
in  the  later  copies,  the  sentiments  expressed  became  trifling 
and  irrelevant,  as  will  be  seen  in  the  following  transcripts 
from  specimens  in  the  Pennsylvania  Museum: 

"Ich  bin  geritten  liber  berg  and  Dal 
Hab  untrei  funten  liber  ahl.  1805." 

I  have  ridden  over  hill  and  dale 

(and)  have  found  disloyalty  everywhere.* 

On  a  similar  plate  of  later  date  we  read: 

"Ein  Peifge  tuback  ist  einen  so  gut 
Als  wan  man  die  daller  bei  den  Metger  ver  dut." 

A  pipe  of  tobacco  does  a  man  as  much  good 
As  though  he  spends  his  money  with  the  girls. 

This  is  a  difficult  passage  to  translate.  Our  first  impulse 
would  be  to  render  the  second  line  as  it  appears  to  be  writ- 
ten,— As  though  he  spends  his  dollar  in  a  butcher  shop,  but  Mr. 
Charles  H.  Deetz,  of  Washington,  D.  C,  an  authority  on  the 
Pennsylvania-German  dialect,  translates  the  word  Metger, 
girls,  basing  his  conclusion  on  the  fact  that  Madcher  is 
used  in  some  of  the  German  localities  instead  of  the  plural 
Madchen.  In  Montgomery  county  g  is  generally  given  the 
sound  of  eh,  and  Mad  (or  met)  is  pronounced  mate.  The 
word  Metger,  therefore,  was  not  intended  for  the  German 


*A  dish  of  this  series,  of  the  same  date,  contains  this  variation  in  the 
wording: 

"Ich  bin  geritten  vil  stunt  und  dag 
Und  doch  noch  kein  metel  haben  mag.     Ao.  1805." 

I  have  ridden  many  hours  (viel  stunden)  and  days 
And  yet  no  girl  (m'ddel)  am  able  (vcrmogen)  to  have 
(no  girl  will  have  me). 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM  AX  S 


143 


Metzger  (butcher),  but  was  the  phonetic  spelling  of  Mad- 
cher.  The  same  word  occurs  in  two  other  plates  embellished 
with  the  same  mounted  Continental  soldier: 


49-    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE 
Tulip  Decoration. 
Made  by  Johannes  Neesz. 
In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,  Philadelphia. 


'Ich  bin  geritten  iiber  berg  und  dahl 
Hab  mctgcr  funten  iiber  all." 

I  have  been  riding  over  hill  and  dale 
And  everywhere  have  found  (pretty)  girls. 


144 


TULIP  WARE 


On  another  example  with  the  same  central  device  and 
marginal  inscription  we  find  some  differences  in  the  spelling 
of  words: 

"Ich  bin  geritten  iiber  berg  und  tal 
Hab  metsrer  funten  iber  ahl." 


50.    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 

Fuchsia   Decoration. 

Made  by  Johannes  Neesz. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,  Philadelphia. 


This  is  evidently  an  adaptation  or  corruption  of  the  old  Ger- 
man couplet, 

"Ich  bin  geritten  iiber  Berg  und  Thai 
Hab'  hiibsche  Madchen  eefunden  iiberall." 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS         145 

Again,  on  a  dish  with  similar  ornamentation,  we  read 
this  legend: 

"Ich  fert  die  heid  strosz  bin  und  her 
Und  doch  wirt  mir  tier  beitel  lehr." 

I  traveled  (fahren  I  up  and  down  the  street 

And  yet  my  ptirsv  (  beutel)  was  empty  (leer). 

It  is  not  strange  that  in  course  of  time  the  original 
significance  of  this  extensively  reproduced  device  should 
have  been  entirely  lost  sight  of,  and  that,  by  a  gradual 
process  of  evolution,  the  inscriptions  should  have  been  com- 
pletely changed,  as  in  this  rollicking  couplet  found  on  a 
late  example  (illustration  51): 

"Ich  bin  ein  reitnecht  als  wie  ein  ber 

Acb  wan  ich  nur  im  himmel  v. 

I  am  a  horseman  like  a  bear 
I  would  that  I  in  heaven  were. 

A  considerable  number  of  these  "Washington"  plates 
must  have  been  produced  at  the  Xeesz  pottery,  since  more 
than  a  dozen  have  come  into  my  own  bauds  and  several 
others  have  been  reported  to  me.  While,  as  before  stated, 
the  central  figures  in  all  bear  a  close  resemblance,  no  two 
are  precisely  alike.  In  some  of  the  designs  the  rider  holds 
a  trumpet  in  the  right  hand  and  a  sword  in  the  left,  as  in 
the  1805  dish.  In  others  the  trumpet  is  replaced  by  a  to- 
bacco pipe,  and  again  by  a  tlint-lock  pistol. 

On  a  flower-decorated  sgraffito  dish,  which  has  been 
attributed  to  the  elder  Neesz,  the  following  is  found: 

"Yor  alter  seit  da  war  es  so 
ein  alter  man  ist  worten  tro.     Ao.  1809." 

In  olden  times  it  was  so 
That  an  old  man's  words  were  taken  as  true 
(or  an  old  man  was  true  to  his  word). 


146 


TULIP  WARE 


Johannes  Neesz  was  one  of  the  foremost  local  potters 
of  his  day  and  sought  to  elevate  his  art,  to  the  best  of  his 
ability,  by  ornamenting  the  homely  ware  which  was  to  find 
its  way  into  the  dwellings  of  the  common  people.  Not 
only  did  he  decorate  pie  plates,  such  as  are  figured  here,  but 
he   endeavored   to  beautify,   according   to   his   light,    many 


Si.    SGRAFFITO   PIE  PLATE. 

Fuchsia   Decoration. 

Made  by  Johannes  Neesz. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 

other  things  which  were  produced  at  his  establishment.  I 
have  seen  parts  of  tea  sets,  quart  measures,  shaving  basins, 
pickle  jars,  children's  toys  and  many  other  objects  of  his 
workmanship,  which  bear  evidence  of  his  desire  to  brighten 
the  lives  of  those  for  whom  he  labored,  and  while  from  our 
present  standpoint  his  ware  was  clumsy,  crude,  not  to  say 


OF  THE 'PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


147 


grotesque,  it  was  among  the  earliest  decorated  pottery  in 
this  country,  and  for  that  reason  it  possesses  a  value  and 
charm  not  to  be  found  in  the  more  artistic  products  of  a 
later  day. 

On   a  sgraffito  plate   with   etched   figure   of  a  leaping 
stag  occurs  the  following  favorite  inscription: 


52.    SGRAFFITO   PI 

Figure  of   Leaping  Stag. 
Made  by  Johannes  Neesz,    1814. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 


"Ich  bin  gemacht  von  heffner  sin 
Wan  ich  verbrech  so  bin  ich  bin.     Im  Jahr  1814." 


I  am  made  of  potter's  pewter  (dun  ) 
When  I  break  then  I  am  o-one. 


These  same  lines  occur  on  another  piece  dated  "Febrair 
22,  1826."  with  the  characteristic  tulip  embellishment. 

We  do  not  know  when  Johannes  Neesz  ceased  making 
his  ware.     He  had  two  sons,  one  of  whom,  John  Nase  (the 


148 


TULIP  WARE 


spelling  of  the  name  having  been  modified),*  succeeded  him 
in  the  business  and  continued  it  until  about  the  middle  of 
the  century. 

Many  curious  designs,  recently  found  in  possession  of 
some  of  their  descendants,  were  produced  by  both  father 
and  son,  in  slip-traced  and  sgraffito  work.  In  the  majority 
the  tulip,  or  fuchsia,  in  some  form,  is  readily  recognized. 


S3.    SGRAFFITO   PIE   PLATE 

With   Tulip   Decoration. 

Made  by  Johannes  Neesz,   1826. 

In  the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 


Their  work  bears  an  individuality  which  enables  the  con- 
noisseur to  distinguish  it  from  the  productions  of  other 
Pennsylvania-German  potters. 

Among  the  pieces  procured  from  some  of  the  surviving 


*The  name  as  carved  on  the  tombstones  is  also  spelled  Nesz,  Nessin, 
Nace  and  Nesch. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS         149 

relatives  of  John  Nase  are  a  number  showing  his  best  work. 
These  are  in  an  excellent  state  of  preservation,  never  having 
been  in  use;  they  had  been  carefully  and  reverently  treasured 
by  the  owners  for  more  than  half  a  century.  The  condition 
of  some  of  these  is  so  new  and  fresh  that  were  it  not  for  their 
complete  and  satisfactory  authentication,  their  age  might 
well  be  questioned.  Several  of  the  sgraffito  pieces  possess 
a  marked  peculiarity  in  the  absence  of  the  usual  lead  glaze, 
being  covered  with  a  thin,  dull  gloss  or  wash,  similar  to 
that  produced  by  smearing  the  inside  of  the  sagger,  or  fire- 
clay box  used  to  hold  the  ware  in  the  kiln,  with  the  glaze, 
which  in  firing  vaporized  and  settled  upon  the  surface  of 
the  pieces.  Among  these  is  the  line  Washington  plate 
shown  in  illustration  40.  in  which  the  horse  is  colored  brown 
and  the  uniform  of  the  rider  light  green  and  red,  while  the 
tulips  are  finished  in  the  same  tints  and  touched  with 
lavender. 

A  shaving  basin  of  the  period  of  about  1830,  probably 
the  work  of  John  Nase  (illustration  541.  is  thus  inscribed: 

"Du  bist  von  der  art 
Das  du  hast  drei  har  ambart," 

which  may  be  rendered: 

Thou  art  of  the  kind 

That  has  but  three  hair-  in  the  heard, 

a  saying  which  has  reference  to  a  clever,  but  tricky,  fellow 
(see  also  illustration  10). 

A  curious  departure  from  the  usual  method  of  applying 
white  slip  as  an  engobe  is  seen  in  some  of  John  Nase's  plates 
which  have  a  solid  black  surface  produced  by  covering  the 
red  clay  with  a  preparation  of  manganese  through  which  the 
designs  have  been  scratched  to  reveal  the  bright  red  clay 
beneath.  The  black  ground  has  a  dull  finish,  while  the 
bases  of  petals  and  leaves  have  been  touched  with  glaze  to 


150 


TULIP  WARE 


intensify  the  black  pigment.  The  tips  of  the  leaves  and 
flowers  are  glossy  red,  which  combination  of  coloring  pro- 
duces a  most  pleasing  and  novel  effect. 

Thus  far  we  have  shown  only  examples  of  sgraffito  ware 
produced  at  the  Nase  pottery.  Slip-decorated  pieces  were 
also  made  there,  as  has  been  already  stated,  but  not  in  such 
abundance.     One  of  the  best  designs  in  this  style  is  found  on 


54.    SGRAFFITO    SHAVING    BASIN 

With  Fuchsia  Decoration. 

Probably   by  John    Nase,   about   1830. 

In   the   Pennsylvania   Museum.    Philadelphia. 

a  pan-shaped  dish  carrying  the  date  1847.     In  the  center  is 

the  figure  of  a  bird  surrounded  by  flowers,  traced  in  black 

and  white  slips  on  the  bright  red  body  of  the  ware,  and 

around  the  border  is  the  following  couplet: 

"Ich  koch  was  ich  kan 
Est  mein  sau  net  so  est  mein  man.     Ao.  1847." 

I  cook  what  I  can. 

If  my  sow  will  not  eat.  my  husband  will. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


i  si 


This  was,  doubtless,  suggested  by  the  old  German  say- 
ing, "1  le  is  a  poor  fanner  because  he  rats  all  the  good  things 
himself,  and  does  not  give  his  pig  any."  The  second  line  of 
this  inscription  was  translated  by  me.  in  the  first  edition  of 


55.     SLU'TKAl   ED    DISH 

With    Bird   and    Fuchsia   Decoration. 

By  John   Xase,   1S47. 

In   the    Pennsylvania    Museum.    Philadelphia. 

"The  Pottery  and  Porcelain  of  the  United  States,"  "Is  my 
pig  neat,  so  is  my  man,"  in  the  belief  tha^  the  word  est  was 
a  corruption  of  ist,  and  the  word  net  was  intended  to  mean 
neat,  as  it  does  in  some  sections  of  the  Pennsylvania- 
German    district.      But    est   is    in    reality    the    third    person 


'52 


TULIP  WARE 


singular,  present  tense,  of  the  indicative  or  subjunctive 
mood  of  the  verb  essen,  to  eat.  the  Pennsylvania  conjuga- 
tion being  Ich  ess,  Du  cs{s)t,  Er  cs{s)t.  The  word  net, 
in  this  passage,  is  the  Pennsylvania-German  for  not,  which 
is  a  corruption  or  abbreviation  of  the  German  nicht.     The 


56.    SLIP-DECORATED    SUGAR    BOWI. 

With    Modeled    Lid. 

By  John  Nase,  about   1830. 

In   the  Pennsylvania   Museum,   Philadelphia. 


correct  rendering  of  the   inscription   is,   therefore,   as  first 
given.     It  is  the  kind  of  "Dutch"  that  is  spoken  in  some  of 
the  more  remote  places  where  the  English  is  not  known. 
On  a  similar  dish  is  found  this  sentiment: 

"An  diesem  disch  gefalt  mirs  nicht 
Der  Koch  der  wascht  die  finer  nicht." 

I  do  not  like  it  at  this  table. 

The  cook  does  not  wash  her  finsrers. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  153 

Two  elaborate  pieces  of  clay  modeling  from  the  Nase 
pottery  arc  a  sugar  bowl  and  cream  pitcher  with  twisted 
handles.  These  are  made  of  red  clay  decorated  with  dots 
and  festoons  of  yellow  slip,  covered  with  a  heavy,  rich  dark- 
brown  glaze  which  sparkles  with  an  auriferous  sheen  akin 
to  goldstone.  The  lid  of  the  howl  is  built  up  into  a  crown- 
shaped  ornament  by  the  coiling  of  thin  ropes  of  clay  into 
spirals  and  scrolls,  while  the  interstices  and  edges  are  fin- 
ished with  little  halls  and  head  work  (see  also  illustration  8). 
The  general  form  of  the  piece  bears  a  strong  resemblance  to 
that  of  some  of  the  early  English  posset-pots,  bul  Mr.  M.  L. 
Solon,  of  Minton's,  England,  the  most  illustrious  slip-dec 
orator  in  the  world,  informs  me  that  this  shape  is  frequently 
seen  in  some  of  the  old  pottery  of  Switzerland.  It  is  sup- 
posed that  the  Neesz  family  came  from  that  country  in  the 
eighteenth  century. 

JOHN   AND   PETER    HEADMAN. 

The  Headman  pottery,  in  Rock  Hill  township.  Bucks 
county,  Pa.,  was  operated  by  John  Headman,  who  died  a 
few  years  ago,  at  the  age  of  one  hundred.  During  later 
years  his  son.  Peter,  worked  it  and  recently  a  Mr.  Watson 
was  in  possession.  The  pottery  proper  adjoins  the  residence 
portion  of  the  structure  and  is  a  three-story  building  with 
one  broad,  low,  flat-topped  stone  kiln  on  the  ground  floor, 
which  does  not  reach  above  the  first  story.  Nothing  has 
been  made  here  of  late  years  except  plain  flower-pots,  pie 
plates,  drain  tile  and  the  usual  common  wares.  Some  of  the 
old,  square,  wooden  dish  or  platter  molds  and  coggle-wheels 
may  yet  be  seen  about  the  place  and  the  old  stone  grinding 
mill  for  preparing  the  red  lead  used  in  glazing  is  yet  in  use. 

ANDREW  AND  CHARLES  HEADMAN. 

A  few  hundred  feet  down  the  road  from  the  Peter  Head- 
man kiln  is  another  old  pottery,  formerly  worked  by  Andrew 


154 


TULIP  WARE 


Headman,  and  later  by  his  son,  Charles.  For  some  years 
this  has  been  idle.  Here  were  made  decorated  flower  vases 
and  dishes  of  various  sorts.  In  the  museum  of  the  Bucks 
County  Historical  Society,  at  Doylestown,  Pa.,  is  an  ex- 
cellent example  of  the  elder  Headman's  work, — a  pie  plate 
with  a  large  star  in  the  center,  surrounded  by  tulips,  with 
the   name   and   date,   "Andrew    Headman    1808,"   beneath. 


57.    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 

Parrot   and   Tulip    Decoration. 

Made  by  Andrew   Headman,   1808. 

In   the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

This  is  a  sgraffito  piece,  in  a  beautiful  state  of  preservation. 
Another  example  of  Andrew  Headman's  work  is  a  similar 
plate  in  the  Pennsylvania  Museum  collection,  marked  with 
the  initials  A.  H.  and  the  date  1808,  and  a  central  device  of 
tulips,  fuchsias  and  a  parrot. 

A  number  of  good  pieces  were  made  by  Charles  Head- 
man, bearing  the  date  1849.  These  are  flower  holders, 
with  five  separate  tubes  branching  out  from  a  ring-shaped 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


155 


body,  made  of  coarse  red  pottery,  with  rude  floral  slip  de- 
signs in  low  relief,  in  green,  brown  and  yellow. 


58.    FLOWER  VASE  (FAX-SHAPED). 

Slip-Painted  Decoration. 

Made   by   Charles   Headman,    1S49. 

In   the   Pennsylvania   Museum.    Philadelphia. 


PHILIP    KLINE. 

Henry  C.  Mercer,  in  his  Tools  of  the  Nation  Maker 
(p.  45,  No.  525),  is  authority  for  the  statement  that  Philip 
Kline  was  a  workman  at  the  brick  works  of  Daniel  Solliday, 
Tohickon  Creek,  Bucks  county,  Pa.  He  is  said  to  have  been 
an  exceedingly  original  and  eccentric  character  and  came 
from  Reading.  Pa.  He  appears  to  have  been  something  of 
a  potter  as  well,  since  a  piece  of  incised  pottery  bearing  his 


156 


TULIP  WARE 


name  has  come  to  light.  This  is  a  two-handled  puzzle  mug 
of  the  same  construction  as  those  which  have  been  produced 
in  England  for  two  hundred  years.  The  piece  is  nine  inches 
in  height,  of  light  red  or  orange  colored  clay,  glazed  and 
slightly  streaked  with  brown.  On  the  front  is  a  figure  of 
the  American  eagle,  in  cavetto,  from  whose  mouth  issues  the 


59.    PUZZLE-MUG 

With  Decorations  In  Cavetto. 

Made  by   Philip   Kline,    1809. 

In   the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

word  "Leberty."      On  the  reverse  side  are  scratched  the 

initials  P  x  K  and  the  date  "May  5the,  1809,"  while  on  the 

base  is  inscribed  „ 

"Phillip  Kline 

his  Muge 

May  5the  1809." 

For  the  discovery  of  this  interesting  example  the  writer 
is  indebted  to  Mr.  Henry  F.  Shaddinger.  This  piece,  while 
it  bears  some  resemblance  to  sgraffito  ware,  can  scarcely  be 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  157 

classed  with  slip-decorated  work,  since  the  red  clay  is  not 
covered  with  slip,  but  is  of  a  uniform  color  throughout.  The 
decorative  designs  are  scratched  or  impressed  in  the  red 
body,  in  cavetto,  which  is  different  from  true  intaglio  or 
sgraffito  work,  where  the  upper  clay  is  cut  away  to  show  the 
under  clay  of  a  different  color. 

MICHAEL   AND  JACOB  SCHOLL. 

Another  pottery  was  established  near  Tyler's  Port,  by 
Michael  Scholl  in  the  early  part  of  the  last  century,  who  was 
succeeded  by  his  son,  Jacob  Scholl.  A  part  of  the  old  struc- 
ture, adjoining  the  house,  is  still  standing,  but  the  kiln  has 
disappeared  and  the  apartment  is  now  used  as  an  outhouse 
for  the  storage  of  cider  barrels  and  rubbish.  Nearby  is  an 
old  building  which  is  still  covered  with  tin-  old-time  clay 
roofing  tiles  which  were  extensively  used  a  hundred  years 
ago. 

The  large  number  of  decorated  dishes  from  the  Scholl 
pottery,  found  in  the  vicinity,  would  seem  to  indicate  that 
an  extensive  business  had  been  carried  on  there  at  one  time. 
Some  of  these  pieces  have  been  vouched  for  by  descendants 
of  the  manufacturers,  in  whose  possession  they  were  found, 
and  by  means  of  these,  other  examples  have  been  identified. 
The  decorative  work  is  of  an  unusually  high  order  and  the 
forms  of  the  pieces  are  particularly  graceful  in  outline.  So 
far  as  we  can  ascertain,  slip-tracing  was  not  practised  by  the 
Scholls,  as  all  of  the  examples  of  their  work  which  have  been 
discovered  are  in  the  sgraffito  style.  Their  pie  plates  were 
characterized  by  a  flatter  base  and  a  more  upright  curve 
of  the  rim  than  marked  the  patterns  of  other  potteries  and 
by  these  peculiarities  they  may  be  recognized,  as  also  by 
the  greenish  tone  of  the  dull  glaze,  the  graceful  twining  of 
the  floriated  devices  and  the  careful  lettering  of  the  inscrip- 
tions.    A  potter's  mark  is  sometimes  found  on  the  bottom 


i58  TULIP  WARE 

of  some  of  the  pieces,  particularly  the  ornamental  jars, — 
the  only  instance  we  have  observed  of  a  distinct  factory 
stamp  having  been  used  by  the  Pennsylvania-German  pot- 
ters. This  is  a  device  an  inch  in  diameter  representing  the 
outspread  petals  of  a  flower,  probably  the  fuchsia,  impressed 
in  the  clay  by  means  of  a  hardened  pottery  stamp. 

The  earliest  known  dated  pieces  from  the 
Michael  Scholl  pottery  were  made  in  1811. 
Two  sgraffito  pie  plates  bearing  this  date  have 
come  into  my  hands,  one  of  them  having  a 
central  design  of  a  bird  and  flowers,  and  this 

60.      MARK  OF  •  ,  ■ 

jacob  scholl.  inscription : 

"Kent  ich  schwimen  wie  ein  Schwan 
Kreen  wie  Siickel  Han 
Karesiren  wie  ein  Spatz 
So  wer  ich  aller  Jiinter  ir  Schatz.     181 1." 

Could  I  swim  like  a  swan 
Crow  {kraKen  )  like  a  lively  cock 
Cajole  (caressiren  )  like  a  sparrow 
1  would  be  the  favorite  of  all  maidens. 

The  second,  decorated  with  a  bird  and  tulips,  bears  the 
unpoetic  sentiment: 

"Morgens  in  aller  Fruh  brad  ich  Mir  eine  Warst'  in  saurer  bri. 
181 1." 

Early  in  the  morning  I  fry  (bratcn)  a  sausage  (zvurst)  in  sour 
gravy  (brei). 

Jacob  Scholl  was  making  decorative  ware  as  early  as 
1830  and  several  examples  of  his  work,  bearing  date  of  1831, 
are  known.  A  pie  plate  eleven  inches  in  diameter,  belonging 
to  Mr.  L.  S.  Ratzel,  a  grandson  of  the  maker,  is  embellished 
with  an  incised  design  of  flowers,  vines  and  star-shaped  or- 
naments. The  piece  is  unglazed,  except  in  spots  where 
green  color  has  been  applied  to  emphasize  petals  and  other 
parts.  '  Around  the  border  is  this  inscription: 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM  ASS  159 

"Dren  Blumen  auf  einem  Stiehl 
Lang  in  die  Schiissel  und  Nim  Nicht  Viehl.     Im  Jahr  1831.'' 

Three  flowers  on  one  stem 

Reach  into  the  dish  and  take  (nekmen  1  not  much  {rich. 
In  the  year  1831. 


61.    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 

Fuchsia    Decoration. 

Made  by  Jacob  Scholl.   1831. 

In   the    Pennsylvania    Museum,    Philadelphia. 


Other  known  plates  from  the  Scholl  pottery  are  two 
nine-inch  uninscribed  examples  with  lily  or  tulip  decoration; 
a  thirteen-inch  dish  with  rude  drawing  of  a  vase  or  urn  at 
base  and  two  birds  in  the  foliage  above;  a  plate  thus  in- 
scribed: 


i  Go 


TULIP  WARE 


"Alles  verfressen  und  versofen  vor  meinem  end 
Macht  ein  riichdig  Testament.     Im  Jahr  1831." 

To  consume  everything  in  gluttony  and  intem- 
perance before  my  end 
Makes  a  just  testament  (see  also  illustration  89). 

To  the  same  establishment  is  attributed  a  large  pie  dish 
which  is  covered  with  an  incised  representation  of  the  Amer- 
ican eagle,  grasping  in  its  beak  a  scroll  on  which  are  lettered 
the  words  "Liberty  in  the  year  1832."      Two  large  covered 


62.    SGRAFFITO    JARS. 

Floral   Designs. 

Made  by  Jacob  Scholl,  c.   1830. 

jars,  however,  in  possession  of  a  descendant,  are  examples 
of  the  most  artistic  work  that  was  done  there.  One  is  al- 
most globular  in  shape,  while  the  other  is  cylindrical.  In 
the  white  slip-coating  which  covers  them,  bold  floral  de- 
signs have  been  scratched,  showing  the  deep  red  color  of 
the  under  clay,  while  the  leaves  and  petals  are  touched  with 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  [61 

green  and  blue.  Each  of  these  fine  pieces,  which  measure 
about  nine  inches  in  height,  bears  on  its  base  the  mark 
which  has  already  been  described.  It  is  said  that  one  Michael 
Fillman,  a  journeyman,  executed  some  of  the  best  designs 
produced  at  this  pottery. 

HENRY    ROUDEBUTH. 

Several  good  examples  of  Sgraffito  earthenware,  marked 
with   the   name  of   Henry   Roudebuth,   arc  to   be   found   in 
private  and  public  collections.     The  oldest  of  these,  in  pos- 
ion  of  Mr.  H.  W.  Erving,  of  Hartfi  iteel 

[811.  It  is  of  the  usual  pie  plate  form,  about  ten  inches  in 
diameter,  and  bears  in  the  cent*  lesign  consisting 

of  a  group  of  five  blossoms,  and  the  following  marginal  in- 
scription: 

"Fiinf  Blumen  auf  einem  Stiel 
Kreif  in  die  Schissel  und  isz  nicht  fiel,  1N1 1." 

Five  flowers  on  one  stem  li         n  c\ 

Reach  {greifen)  in  the  dish  ami  J~l  -enjuu /\aU4^u.f/t) 

Art  nnt    cnt    I  *>c^    murh  A  n  ^ 


A/i  //3s 


(k 


tfa 


do  not  eat  (_es)  much. 

On  the  back  is  scratched: 

"Liperty 
Henry  Roudebuth 

Apil     28th     IOII.  HENRY    ROUDEBUTH. 

A  second  example  by  the  same  potter  has  for  a  central 

device  a  bird  and  tulips.     It  is  thus  inscribed: 

"Es  ist  mier  ser  bang 
Meine  Wieste  Tochter  grigt  kein  Mann.     H.  R.  1813." 

I  am  very  much  afraid 

My  naughty  (wiiste)  daughter  will  get  (kriegen)  no  man. 

Still  another  piece,  of  somewhat  more  elaborate  orna- 
mentation and  larger  size,  has  recently  been  acquired  by  the 
Pennsylvania  Museum.  On  an  elevated  platform  stands  a 
vase  or  decorated  jardiniere,  from  which  rises  a  wonderful 


162  TULIP  WARE 

plant  bearing  gigantic  four-petaled  flowers,  probably  in- 
tended to  represent  the  expanded  blossoms  of  the  fuchsia. 
In  the  branches  above  a  bird  is  perched.  In  the  lower  space 
or  panel  are  three  names  and  a  date: 

"Sally  Sterner  1816 

Henry  Roudebuth 

John  Richline." 

A  plate  with  scratched  figure  of  a  mounted  Continental 
soldier,  with  bear-skin  cap  and  drawn  sword,  may  also  be  at- 
tributed to  this  potter.  The  border  decoration  is  a  design 
of  large  flowers.  Below  the  central  device  are  the  initials 
H.  R.  and  the  date  1816.  The  Roudebuth  pottery  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  situated  in  Montgomery  county,  Pa. 

HEINRICH  STOFFLET. 

There  seems  to  have  been  at  least  one  pottery  in  Berks 
county  where  decorated  earthenware  was  made,*  which  was 
operated  by  Heinrich  Stofflet.  A  pie  dish  of  this  date,  with 
sgraffito  designs  of  a  vase  and  flowers  and  the  date  1814 
above,  is  supposed  to  have  been  made  by  him.  On  the  back 
the  following  note  is  scratched  in  the  clay: 

"Diese  schissel  ist  gemacht  vor  den  in 
Nord  gemanner  Daunfiel  bergs  gaundie 
Junius  den  4,  den  1814.     So  viel  von  mier 
Heinrich  Stofflet." 

The  wording  of  this  record  is  rather  obscure;  the  following, 
one  of  several  renderings,  has  been  suggested: 

This  dish  is  made  for  that  one  in  the  North  community,  Daunfiel, 
Berks  countv,  June  4,  1814.     So  much  from  me, 

Henry  Stofflet. 


♦Governor  Samuel  W.  Pennypacker  informs  me  that  among  the  1232 
men  who  went  from  the  Palatinate  to  London  in  1709,  a  large  proportion  of 
whom  settled  in  Berks  County,  there  were  three  potters. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


163 


This  is  the  only  piece  bearing  this  name  that  seems  to 
have  turned  up.  As  a  rule  the  names  of  head  potters,  when 
they  occur  on  pottery,  are  found  in  connection  with  the 
decoration  inscriptions,  although  they  were  occasionally 
etched  on  the  backs  of  plates.  Journeymen  potters,  or 
sistants.  in  rare  instances  scratched  their  names  on  the  under 


64.     FLUTED  DISH. 

Sgraffito  Decoration. 

Made  by  Samuel  Troxel,  1823. 

In  the    Pennsylvania    Museum,    Philadelphia. 

sides  of  pieces  decorated  by  them.    It  is  possible  that  Stofflet 
was  merely  a  workman  in  one  of  the  Berks  county  potteries. 

SAMUEL  TROXEL. 

There  is  in  the  Pennsylvania  Museum  a  fluted  or  seal- 


164 


TULIP  WARE 


loped  sgraffito  dish,  of  oval  shape,  which  was  made  by 
Samuel  Troxel,  who  was  a  potter  in  Montgomery  county 
previous  to  1823.  It  is  uncertain  when  his  pottery  was  es- 
tablished, but  it  is  probable  that  it  was  somewhere  near  this 
date,  which  is  the  earliest  that  has  been  found  on  any  of  his 
productions. 

In  the  collection  is  also  an  elaborately  decorated  earth- 
enware flowerpot  or  jardiniere,  a  foot  in  height  and  thirteen 


L 


65.    LARGE    FLOWERPOT. 

Made   by   Samuel   Troxel,    1828. 

In  the   Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 


inches  in  diameter,  from  the  same  pottery.  This  fine  ex- 
ample is  almost  entirely  covered  with  bands  of  incised  work 
in  conventional  designs.  A  short  distance  from  the  top  is  a 
projecting  ledge,  crimped  like  pie  crust,  while  above  this  is 
a  narrow  zone  containing  etched  figures  of  birds  and  flowers; 
extending  around  the  edge  is  the  following  inscription: 

"Dieser  haffen  von  erd  gemacht 
Und  wann  er  verbrecht  der  hefner  lacht." 

This  pot  is  made  of  earth, 

And  when  it  breaks  the  potter  laughs. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM  AX  S 


165 


This  portion  is  in  German,  but   continuing  around  to  the 
other  side  is  the  following  in  English: 

"Michel    Cope,    bought    of    Samuel    Troxcl    Them 
Flouer  Pott  M.  C.  1828." 

It    would    seem    that    this    elaborate    piece    was    made    by 
Samuel  Troxel  for  Michael  Cope  in  1828.     There  was  origin 
ally  a  pedestal  for  the  pot  to  stand  on,  as  shown  by  a  flange 
at  the  base. 

Several  Troxel  pie  plates,  bearing  the  date  1826,  have 
been  discovered.      One  of  these  i<  invested  with  more  than 


SGRAFFJ  K  I   TIE  PLATE, 
ide  by   Samuel  Troxel.   r 
In   the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

ordinary  interest  because  it  was  the  first  piece  of  this  ware 
to  attract  attention  to  the  existence  of  inscribed  dip  ware 
in  the  United  States.  It  was  purchased  by  the  writer  in  a 
junk  shop  some  years  ago,  as  a  curious  old  piece  of  German 
manufacture  which  had  found  its  way  to  this  country.  A 
careful  examination  of  the  inscription,  however,  subse- 
quently disclosed  the  fact  that  the  wording  was  not  pure 


1 66  TULIP  WARE 

German,  but  Pennsylvania  "Dutch."  This  is  of  typical 
form,  eleven  inches  in  diameter.  In  the  center  are  two  birds 
perched  upon  twigs,  beneath  which  is  the  American  eagle 
and  the  exact  date,  May  16,  1826,  while  around  the  margin 
is  the  inscription: 

"Fisch  und  Fogel ;  gehoren  nicht  den  Growen  Flogel ; 
Aber  Fogel  Fisch,  gehoren  den  Herren  auf  den  disch." 

This  may  be  translated: 

Fish  and  birds  are  not  for  rude  churls 

But  birds  and  fish  belong  to  gentlemen  at  the  table. 

By  the  aid  of  the  meager  information  furnished  by  the 
dealer  from  whom  it  was  obtained,  the  dish  was  finally  traced 
to  its  source  among  the  local  potteries  of  Pennsylvania. 
The  discovery  of  this  interesting  example,  illustrating  a 
phase  of  the  potter's  art  which  had  not  previously  been 
known  to  exist  in  the  United  States,  opened  up  an  entirely 
new  and  fascinating  field  for  ceramic  investigation. 

Another  example  with  the  same  precise  date,  subse- 
quently acquired,  is  of  similar  size  and  form  and  is  evidently 
from  the  same  mold.  While  the  decorations  are  similar  in 
style,  they  differ  slightly  in  detail.  In  place  of  the  two  birds 
are  floral  designs,  while  the  eagle  below  grasps  an  olive 
branch  in  each  foot.  The  inscription  around  the  border, 
however,  is  entirely  different: 

" Wer  das  lieben  ungesund 
So  dadens  docter  meiten, 
Und  wans  den  wibern  weh  dad, 
So  dadens  sie  nicht  leiten," 

which  may  be  rendered: 

If  loving  were  unwholesome 

Surely  the  doctor  would  avoid  it  (mcidcn) 

And  if  it  would  hurt  the  wives 

They  surely  would  not  suffer  it. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  167 

On  the  back,  the  name  of  the  maker  and  date  have 
been  scratched  while  the  clay  was  moist, — ''Samuel  Troxel 
Potter,  May  the  16th,  1826,"  thus  dispelling  any  uncertainty 
as  to  the  origin  of  the  previously  described  dish. 

A  similar  inscription  to  the  last,  with  a  slight  variation 
in  the  spelling,  is  found  on  a  third  plate  of  Troxel's  work- 
manship. In  the  center  are  the  same  flowers  and  the  eagle, 
while  above  is  a  panel  containing  the  words  "Liberty  for 
Jackson  1833."  The  name  is  evidently  intended  for  that  of 
Andrew  Jackson.    Around  the  edge  is  inscribed: 

"Wer  das  lieben  ungesund 
So  tin: tens  doctor  molten 
Und  wan  den  vvibern  weh  that 
hat  ens  sie  nicht  leiten 
Sep.  25th  [833." 

The  presidential  election  of  1828  furnished  a  subject  for 
decorative  treatment  at  Troxel's  pottery.  A  pie  dish  owned 
by  Prof.  Alfred  G.  Rolfe,  of  Pottstown,  Pa.,  bears  in  the 
center  a  spread  eagle  clutching  two  conventionalized  tulips. 
Above  are  the  words  "Liberty  for  I.  A.  Jackson,"  and  around 
the  circumference  is  inscribed,  "Samuel  Troxel;  Potter; 
1828."  and  doggerel  couplet. 

On  the  back  is  etched: 

"Samuel  Troxel 

Potter  October  the 

6th  A.  D.  1828, 

in  the  year  of 

our  Lord 

12^  cent." 

Another  dish  bears  on  the  back  the  following: 

"Samuel  Troxel 
Potter  to  Upper  Hanulxr 
Township  Montgomery 
County  and  State  of  Pennsyl- 
vania March  the  4th  A.  D.  1830 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
Caust  12^  Cent,  and 
so  for " 


168  TULIP  WARE 

By  means  of  these  interesting  pieces  we  learn  that 
the  exact  location  of  Troxel's  pottery  was  in  Upper  Hanover 
township,  Montgomery  county,  Pa.,  and  that  the  original 
cost  of  these  decorated  dishes  was  12^  cents  each. 

A  collector  in  Hartford,  Conn.,  possesses  an  interesting 
example  by  the  same  maker.  It  is  a  pie  plate  inscribed  with 
the  name  of  the  recipient,  "Elizabeth  Reiser,"  and  on  the 
back  with  the  name  of  Samuel  Troxel  and  the  year  of  manu- 
facture, 1827. 

Another  sgraffito  pie  plate,  attributed  to  Troxel,  dec- 
orated with  birds  and  flowers,  is  thus  inscribed: 

"In  der  Schisel  auf  dem  disch, 
Lustig  wer  noch  ledig  ist 
Traurich  wer  versprochen  ist." 

In  the  dish  on  the  table, 
Merry  he  who  yet  is  single 
Sad  is  he  who  is  engaged. 

From  these  identified  pieces  we  learn  that  the  Troxel 
pottery  was  in  active  operation  from  1823  to  1833. 

DAVID    HARING. 

Another  pottery  in  Nockamixon  township,  Bucks 
county,  Pa.,  was  erected  by  David  Haring  in  1828.  Mr. 
Haring  was  bom  in  Haycock  township,  Bucks  county,  on 
September  12,  1S01.  His  parents  emigrated  to  America 
from  Germany  sometime  in  the  eighteenth  century. 

At  the  Haring  pottery  both  slip-traced  and  sgraffito 
wares  were  made.  Mr.  A.  B.  Haring,  of  Frenchtown,  N.  J., 
a  son  of  the  potter,  has  vivid  recollections  of  his  experiences 
when,  as  a  boy,  he  worked  around  the  place.  The  prospect 
of  a  large  apple  crop  always  meant  a  busy  time  for  the  potter 
in  that  section,  as  a  sufficient  supply  of  crocks  had  to  be 
made  for  the  apple  butter  harvest.  The  setting  of  the  kiln 
consumed  a  full  day,  and  thirty-six  hours  were  required  to 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  [69 

burn  the  ware.     During  this  period  all  other  work  was  sus 
pended  and  the  boys  of  the  neighborhood  were  accustomed 
to  congregate   in   the   pottery   and   pass   away   the   night    in 
feeding  the  fires  and  playing  games.     In  contrast   to  ti 
jolly  occasions  were  the  long  nights  when  the  more  prosaic 
work  of  grinding  the  glazing  materials  was  carried  on,  and. 
boylike,   disputes    would   often   arise   as   to   the    nui 
ladlefuls  each  one  had  prepar< 


9*    tf  A 


ll. \YII>    HAKIM,.    POT!  1 
Born 

After  the  stock  of  common  wares  had  been  finished  and 
the  workmen  could  find  time  to  return  to  the  work  of  orna- 
menting special  pieces,  it  was  always  fascinating  to  watch 
them  deftly  tilting  the  slip  cups  and  drawing  out  the  re- 
quired clay  to  form  fancy  designs  and  entertaining  inscrip- 
tions. In  the  old  home  of  the  master  potter  the  great 
mantel  shelf  always  contained  a  long  row  of  these  elaborately 
decorated  dishes  placed  on  edge. 

Mr.  Haring  was  successful  in  business,  considering  the 
period,  and  after  amassing  a  competency  he  retired  in  1865. 
A  fair  example  of  the  ware  produced  by  him  is  a  sgraffito 


i7o  TULIP  WARE 

dish  with  natural  leaf  impressions,  one  of  the  few  pieces 
which  have  survived,  which  is  now  in  the  Pennsylvania 
Museum.  Another  good  example  of  Mr.  Haring's  work  is 
an  openwork  tobacco  box  which  is  here  shown.  There  are 
also  in  existence  small  earthenware  toys  which  came  from 
this  pottery;  one,  a  red  clay  goblet  or  stemmed  cup,  covered 
with  a  brownish  red  glaze,  may  be  seen  in  the  Pennsylvania 
Museum.  Many  of  these  diminutive  pieces  were  in  reality 
trial  pieces  made  of  new  clay  to  test  its  quality.     Mr.  A.  B. 


68.    TOBACCO  JAR 

With    Openwork    Sides. 

Made   by   David   Haring,   c.    1840. 

Owned  by  Mr.  A.   B.  Haring. 

Haring  informs  me  that  at  one  time  much  inscribed  and 
dated  pottery  was  made  at  his  father's  establishment. 

David  Haring  learned  his  trade  with  an  older  brother, 
John  Haring,  who  had  established  a  pottery  in  Nockamixon 
township  about  1820.  When  he  left  his  brother,  to  begin 
business  on  his  own  account  in  1828,  he  bought  a  tract  of 
land  in  the  near  vicinity,  which  was  rich  in  clay  and  on  which 
he  erected  a  clap-boarded  log  house.  At  one  end  of  this 
he  built  a  log  structure  for  a  pottery  and  to  this  he  added  a 
frame  building  wherein  was  placed  the  kiln.     Previous  to 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


171 


this  time,  all  kilns  in  this  section  were  circular  in  shape. 
Mr.  Haring,  being  of  an  inventive  turn,  constructed  a  square 
kiln  with  two  opposite  corners  cut  off  where  the  fire  holes 
were  placed;  around  the  top  he  placed  a  frame  of  heavy  oak 
timber  which  held  the  walls  firmly  in  place.  He  continued 
to  live  in  the  house  adjojning  until  about  1841,  when  he 
erected  a  substantial  stone  residence  about  one  hundred 
yards  distance  from  the  pottery  and  devoted  the  old  house 
to  the  uses  of  the  business  which  had  greatly  increased.     In 


69.  roYS. 

1.  Bird  Whistle.     By  John   Nase. 

2.  Double    Bottle.      By    David    Spinner. 

3.  Small  Goblet.     By  David  Haring. 

1866,  Mr.   Haring  retired  from  business  and  continued  to 
reside  in  the  new  structure  until  his  death  in  1871. 

In  1877.  the  old  pottery  was  operated  for  a  couple  of 
years  by  a  potter  of  the  name  of  Reiley. 

JARED   R.   HARIXG. 

In  the  same  township,  about  a  mile  from  the  David 
Haring  pottery,  Jared  R.  Haring,  a  son  of  David,  established 
another  pottery  about  the  year  1861.  He  made  useful  and 
ornamental    wares,    toys    and    pottery    whistles    and    other 


i/2  TULIP  WARE 

things.  One  of  these  whistles,  in  the  form  of  a  miniature 
jug,  may  be  seen  in  the  collection  of  the  Pennsylvania  Mu- 
seum.    He  gave  up  the  business  in  1880. 

BENJAMIN  BERGEY. 

Some  of  the  slip-decorated  pieces  found  in  the  Penn- 
sylvania-German district  have  been  attributed,  by  those  from 
whom  they  were  obtained,  to  Benjamin  Bergey,  who  is  said 


70.    SLIP-DECORATED    PIE    PLATE. 

\\  hite  Slip    Beaten   in. 

By  Benjamin  Bergey.  about  1S3S. 

In  the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

to  have  operated  a  pottery  in  Montgomery  count}'  in  the 
first  half  of  the  last  century.  These  are  of  a  different  char- 
acter from  decorative  slip-traced  ware  made  at  other  Ger- 
man potteries.  The  designs,  in  white  slip,  after  being  trailed 
on  the  surface  of  the  ware  from  a  slip  cup,  were  beaten  into 
the  red  clay,  presenting  the  appearance  of  inlaid,  instead  of 
relief,  work.     Five  such  examples  are  known,  four  of  which 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


Wi 


may  be  seen  in  the  collection  of  the  Pennsylvania  Museum, 
and  whether  produced  by  Bergey  or  another  potter,  are  un- 
questionably from  the  same  source.  The  first  of  these, 
evidently  of  the  period  of  about  1830,  bears  in  yellow  on  a 
red  ground  the  figure  of  a  pigeon  or  d  on  a 

twig,  in  the  act  of  plucking  its  breast  (see  also  illustration 
8).  It  is  not  probable  that  this  was  intended  to  portrav 
the  features  of  the  pelican,  although  it  bears  some  resem- 


71.    SLIP-DECORATED    PIE   PLATE. 

General  Jackson. 
Made  by  Benjamin  Bergey,  about  1838. 
In   the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

blance  to  the  drawings  of  that  bird  occasionally  found  on 
the  old  certificates  of  marriage  and  birth  and  other  illumi- 
nated work  of  the  Pennsylvania  Germans,  in  which  drops 
of  blood  are  represented  falling  from  the  pierced  breast  of 
the  parent  bird. 

A  second  piece,  in  the  form  of  a  pie  plate  thirteen  inches 


174 


TULIP  WARE 


in  diameter,  is  almost  covered  with  the  figure  of  a  horse, 
with  rider  in  uniform,  supposed  to  have  been  intended  to 
represent  General  Jackson  (see  also  illustration  8). 

A  third  example,  evidently  by  the  same  artist,  is  em- 
bellished with  the  figure  of  a  crane  or  stork^like  bird  holding 
in  its  beak  a  huge  serpent,  with  the  date  1838  beneath. 


72.    SLIP-DECORATED    DISH. 

Officer  on  Horseback. 

Made  by  Benjamin  Bergey,  about  1838. 

In  the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

The  fourth  is  a  plaque  fourteen  inches  in  diameter,  dec- 
orated with  a  horse,  on  which  is  mounted  an  officer  of  dis- 
proportionate size.  The  animal  is  well  drawn,  considering 
the  state  of  the  art  at  that  period:  this  piece  also  bears  the 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  175 

date  1838.  The  fifth  is  a  pie  plate  bearing  the  figure  of  a 
horse  (illustration  22). 

These  examples  extend  over  a  period  of  perhaps  ten 
years,  from  about  1830  to  1840,  and  are  the  sole  represen- 
tatives, so  far  as  is  known,  of  the  Bergey  pottery.  As  a 
rule,  the  ornamental  slip-traced  pieces  were  intended  for 
decoration  rather  than  for  service,  as  the  raised  tracings 
would  be  likely  to  chip  off  when  subjected  to  heat  or  hard 
usage.  The  above  described  pieces,  however,  show  signs 
of  considerable  use.  having  been  made  in  the  same  manner  as 
the  ordinary  pie  plates  which  are  decorated  with  simple 
curved  and  zigzag  lines. 

The  horses  on  the  pieces  attributed  to  Bergey  are  by 
far  the  best  found  on  the  German  pottery.  They  were 
scratched  in  outline  after  the  slip  designs  had  been  beaten  in. 

ABRAHAM    WEAVER. 

There  was  a  small  pottery  in  Nockamixon  township, 
Bucks  count},  Pa.,  in  [828,  owned  by  Abraham  Weaver, 
which  continued  to  be  operated  until  a  period  as  late  as  1844. 
The  writer  has  seen  a  lot  of  inscribed  pie  plates  which  bear 
the  names  of  various  members  of  the  Weaver  family  and  the 
dates  of  production,  among  which  are  the  following: 

Mary  Ann  Weaver,  1838. 
Abraham  Weaver,  1838. 
Samuel  Weaver,  1844. 

One  of  these  pieces  is  a  sgraffito  plate  ornamented  with  the 
figure  of  a  turtle  dove  and  tulips.  Extending  around  the 
circumference  is  the  legend,  in  English: 

"When  this  you  see  remember  me. 

Abraham  Weaver  Nockamixon  Township  Bucks  County 

May  4th  1828." 


176 


TULIP  WARE 


Abraham  Weaver  was  of  English  or  Irish  extraction 
and  settled  in  Nockamixon  Swamp  where  land  was  cheap 
and  good  clay  abundant.  Weaver's  son  afterwards  worked 
as  a  journeyman  potter  in  the  pottery  of  Michael  McEntee, 
who  a  year  or  so  ago  was  still  living,  at  tbe  age  of  eighty. 


73.    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 
Made  by  Abraham  Weaver,  1828. 


FRIEDRICH    HILDEBRAND. 

Some  two  miles  west  of  Tyler's  Port,  Montgomery 
county,  Pa.,  Friedrich  Hildebrand  manufactured  earthen- 
ware previous  to  1830.  Examples  of  his  work  are  not  now 
abundant,  but  when  found  they  can  usually  be  recognized. 
Those  that  have  fallen  under  my  own  observation  are  dis- 
tinguished by  a  grotesque  element  in  the  decorative  designs, 
which  have  the  appearance  of  having  been  pricked  through 
the  coating  of  white  slip  by  a  sharp  point,  instead  of  being 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  177 

incised  as  in  the  usual  style  of  sgraffito  work.  A  small  pie 
plate  of  this  character,  procured  from  a  descendant  of  the 
maker,  and  now  in  the  Pennsylvania  Museum.  Philadelphia, 
bears  in  the  center  the  figure  of  a  lion,  passant,  while  around 
the  rim  is  a  well-lettered  inscription  beginning  "Ich  leibe 
was  tein  i-t."  etc.  The  surface  of  the  piece  has  the  appear- 
ance of  being  covered  with  a  thin  coating  of  varnish,  an 
effect   produced   by  smearing  the  inside  of  the   sagger,   in 


74.    SGRAFFITO   I'll'.  PLATE. 
Made   by    Friedrich    Hildebrand,    c 
In  the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 


which  it  was  tired,  with  the  ordinary  lead  glaze,  which  in  the 
kiln  would  vaporize  and  form  a  slight  deposit  on  the  ware, 
technically  known  as  "smear"  glaze.  On  the  back  of  the 
plate  the  name  of  Johannes  Leman,  a  workman,  is  scratched 
in  the  clay. 

A  similar  plate,  owned  by  Mr.   Henry  D.   Paxson,  of 
Holicong,   Pa.,   is  evidently  decorated  bv  the   same  artist. 


i78 


TULIP  WARE 


It  bears  the  same  inscription  with  slight  variations  in  the 
spelling  of  some  of  the  words: 

"Ich  Liebe  was  fein  ist, 
Wann  Schon  nicht  mein  ist, 
Und  nur  nicht  werden  Kan, 
So  hab  ich  doch  die  freud  Damn." 

I  like  fine  things 
Even  when  they  are  not  mine 
And  cannot  become  mine 
I  still  enjoy  them. 


75.    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 

Made    by    Friedrich    Hildebrand,    c.    1830. 

Owned  by  Henry  D.   Paxson,   Esq. 


The  lettering,  which  was  done  more  carelessly  than  in 
the  first  described  piece,  was  undoubtedly  the  work  of  the 
same  hand;  the  five-petaled  ornament  at  the  top,  and  the 
floriated  spray  at  the  right  indicate  a  common  origin.  This 
piece  is  particularly  interesting  as  illustrating  the  method 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM  AX  S  179 

employed  in  laying  out  the  letters.  The  last  eight  words 
plainly  show  how  they  were  first  lightly  traced  on  the  white 
slip-coating,  and  the  incised  letters  afterward  spread  out  to 
properly  fill  in  the  remaining  space.  The  central  device 
differs  from  that  of  the  other  plate,  but  is  also  a  heraldic 
character, — the  fore  part  of  a  deer  or  elk  with  the  upcurving 
extremity  of  a  fish. 

GEORGE   DIEHL. 

About  a  quarter  of  a  mile  distant  from  the  present 
of  the  Headman  potteries,  George  Diehl  built  a  similar  estab- 
lishment  in  1832.  His  son,  William,  afterwards  succeeded 
to  the  business  and  continued  until  the  pottery  was  burned 
down  in  1894.  It  is  probable  that  decorated  earthenware 
was  made  there  at  some  period,  but  no  such  pieces  have  as 
yet  been  recognized.  The  principal  products  were  the  or- 
dinary utilitarian  wares,  such  as  crocks,  pots  and  other 
vessels.  The  writer  visited  the  ruins  in  1895  and  found, 
among  other  things  in  the  debris,  a  number  of  earthenware 
stove-leg  rests.  The  old  stone  kiln  was  still  standing  al- 
most intact  (see  illustration  11)  and  close  by,  the  ancient 
pug  mill  where  the  clay  was  ground.  It  is  said  that  the  pot- 
tery has  since  then  been  rebuilt  and  is  again  producing  the 
common  sorts  of  utensils. 


XI.   Gift    Piece. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

I  iift  Pieces. 

It  is  often  difficult  to  determine  whether  the  names 
which  occur  on  Pennsylvania-German  slip  ware  are  those  of 
the  makers  or  the  recipients.  We  have  already  seen  that  cer- 
tain potters  occasionally  signed  their  names  to  their  work. 
while  in  other  instances  they  inscribed  the  names  of  the  per- 
sons for  whom  the  pieces  were  intended,  and.  in  rare  ca 
the  names  of  both  maker  and  recipient  are  found  on  the  same 
piece.     A  pie  plate  with  rudely  etched  0:1th  a  house, 

surrounded  by  large  tulips,  with  petals  closed  and  in  various 
stages  of  expansion,  .-hows  the  name  of  Jacob  Funck  and  the 
date  1S04.  We  have  not  been  able  to  obtain  information  of 
any  potter  of  that  name,  hut  it  is  known  that  at  least  two  per- 
sons bearing  it  were  living  in  the  vicinity  of  some  of  the  pot- 
teries at  the  time  indicated,  and  there  can  be  little  doubt  that 
this  plate  was  made  for  one  of  these,  either  to  fill  an  order  or 
as  a  presentation  piece,  probably  in  commemoration  of  some 
special  occasion,  such  as  a  wedding  or  birthday.  The  in- 
scription on  the  margin  would  seem  to  indicate  the  former: 

"In  der  schisel  steth  ein  Haus 
Wer  mausen  will  der  bleib  draus 
Ost,  West, 
Main  frau  ist  der  best." 

A  liberal  translation  of  this  would  be 

In  the  dish  stands  a  house 

He  who  would  pilfer  will  stav  outside 

East,  West, 

My  wife  is  the  best. 

183 


1 84  TULIP  WARE 

The  name  of  John  Monday,  in  like  manner,  occurs  on  a 
dish  dated  1828,  with  sgraffito  decorations — a  vase  holding 
three  large  tulips  and  two  dahlia-shaped  flowers.  As  we  have 
not  been  able  to  discover  this  name  among  the  former  potters 
of  the  district,  we  are  led  to  conclude  that  Monday  was  the 
original  owner  and  not  the  maker. 


76.    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 

Tulip  Decoration,  1S04. 

In  the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

Certain  name  pieces,  however,  bear  unmistakable  evi- 
dence of  their  donative  character,  such  as  the  pieces  pro- 
duced by  Georg  Hiibener, — "Mathalena  Jungin,  her  Dish," 
"Cadarina  Raderin,  her  Dish,"  etc.,  previously  figured. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum  collection  is  a  gift  piece 
which,  were  the  decoration  more  carefully  done,  we  would  be 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  [85 

inclined  to  attribute  to  Hiibener.  It  is  a  large  dish  with  two 
circles  of  inscriptions  and  the  name  of  the  original  owner  and 
the  date  1798.    In  the  outer  circle  we  read: 

"Die  Schiisel  ist  von  ert  gemagt 
Wan  sie  verbricht  der  Hafner  lacht 
1  )arum  nem  sic  vvohl  in  acht. 

Maria  Helbard,    1798." 

The  dish  is  made  of  earth 
When  it  breaks  the  potter  laughs 
Therefore  tak<  are  1  >t  it. 

Maria  1  [elbard. 

In  the  inner  circle  are  two  old  German  sayings: 

"Click,  Glas  und  Erde  wie  bald  bricht  die  werde. 
Aus  der  erd  mit  verstand  magi  der  Hafner  Aller  Hand." 

Luck,  glass  and  earth  how  soon  they  are  broken. 

Out  of  earth  with  understanding  tli  irything. 

We  know  of  no  potter  of  aboul  that  time  who  decorated 
dishes  with  two  lines  of  inscriptions  other  than  I  fiibener,  but 
the  execution  of  this  piece  is  inferior  to  the  work  found  on 
identified  pieces  of  his  production,  although  it  might  have 
been  made  by  one  of  his  men. 

We  find  the  names  of  Conrad  and  Marsia  Gersoit  on  a 
decorated  plate  of  1S27,  and,  as  we  have  already  seen,  several 
names  are  sometimes  found  together,  as  in  certain  pieces  by 
Weaver  and  Roudebuth. 

A  curious  example  of  sgraffito  work  in  the  Pennsylvania 
Museum  was  apparently  designed  for  a  wedding  gift.  At  one 
side  is  the  figure  of  a  girl  who  is  represented  in  the  act  of 
breaking  off  a  flower  for  presentation  to  a  man  who  stands 
on  the  other  side  of  the  dish  with  outstretched  hands  to  re- 
ceive it.  Close  to  the  figures  are  the  initials  E.  R.  and  C.  M. 
(or  G.  M.).  Two  birds  are  perched  on  twigs  above,  while 
beneath  is  a  large  tulip,  and  scattered  over  the  surface  of  the 
plate  are  decorative  details  of  fishes,  flowers  and  birds.    This 


1 86 


TULIP  WARE 


piece  is  made  of  a  light  yellow  clay  covered  with  white  slip, 
unrelieved  by  touches  of  metallic  coloring. 

Some  of  these  gift  pieces  were  of  the  nature  of  ceramic 
valentines,  prepared  by  the  potters  or  their  apprentices  dur- 
ing leisure  moments,  for  the  benefit  of  a  sweetheart  or  ladv- 


77-    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 

Figures,  Birds  and  Fish. 

In  the  Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 


love.     On  a  large  pie  plate,  with  central  figure  of  a  man,  re- 
sembling a  sailor  or  fisherman,  coarsely  incised  in  white  slip, 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


187 


is  the  English    inscription,  evidently  by  a  German  potter: 

"Love  mc  is  Love  the  Malley  Litecap 
hir  dish  June  12th  A.  D/1819." 

Mollie  Lightcap's  name  also  occurs  on  other  pieces. 

Many  other  examples  of  slip-painted  and  sgraffito  wares, 
shown  in  these  pages,  as  suggested  by  the  inscriptions  placed 
upon  them,  were  evidently  designed  for  presentation  pie< 
although  the  names  of  the  recipients  do  not  always  appear. 
In  those  days  when  money  was  scarce  and  the  stock  of 
country  stores  contained  hut  little  to  tempt  the  would-be 
purchaser  of  mementos,  the  potter  relied  largely  upon  his 
own  ingenuity  to  provide  gifts  for  his  circle  of  friends,  and 
his  homemade  souvenirs  were  valued  mure  highly  than  pur- 
chased articles  of  even  greater  intrinsic  worth  which  lacked 
the  charm  of  personal  association.  A  knickknack  brought 
home  by  an  occasional  visitor  to  the  distant  city  would  be 
likely,  sooner  or  later,  to  pass  into  other  hands,  or  disappear 
entirely,  but  a  dish  or  jar  which  had  been  carefully  wrought 
by  a  loved  one  would  he  treasured  for  years  and  perhaps 
handed  down  from  one  veneration  to  another. 


7$.    DEER   MOTIVE. 


XII.       Unidentified    Slip-Decorated    Ware 


CHAPTER    XII. 
Unidentified  Slip-Decorated  Ware 

Foi  mi  in  Southeastern   Pennsylvania. 

Thus  far  we  have  figured  numerous  pieces  of  decorated 
earthenware  which,  by  means  of  names  and  dates  inscribed 
upon  them,  by  certain  peculiarities  of  treatment,  or  through 
the  statements  of  owners  who  were  able  to  trace  them  to 
their  original  source,  could  be  attributed  to  particular  pot- 
ters. These,  however,  constitute  but  a  small  part  of  the 
lection  in  the  Pennsylvania  Museum.  The  majority  of  exam- 
ples yet  remain  unidentified.  During  the  first  half  of  the 
eighteenth  century  many  small  potteries  sprang  up  in  this 
section  and  in  time  disappeared,  without  leaving  any  records 
whereby  we  might  be  enabled  to  locate  them.  Even  to  the 
end  of  the  century  and  well  into  the  nineteenth  numerous 
pot-works  flourished  for  a  time  and  then  vanished  from  the 
face  of  the  earth  without  leaving  a  trace  behind  them.  Some 
of  their  products  have  survived,  but  through  the  lapse  of 
time  and  changes  of  ownership  their  identity  has  been  com- 
pletely lost.  Some  of  these  unknown  specimens,  however, 
are  aim mg  the  most  characteristic  and  interesting  remains  of 
the  Pennsylvania-German  potteries. 

In  some  respects  the  finest  example  of  slip-painted  ware 
thus  far  discovered  is  a  large  dish,  seventeen  and  a  half  inches 
in  diameter,  which  was  made  in  1769  (illustration  79).  The 
central  decoration  is  a  three-flowered  tulip  boldly  traced  in 
raised  white  slip,  with  bright  green  centers.  Around  the  slop- 

191 


7g.    SLIP- PAINTED  DISH. 

Southeastern   Pennsylvania,   1769. 

In   the    Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia 


OF  THE  PENNS  J  'L I '.  /  NL  I  ( rERM.  I SS  1 93 

ing  margin  are  two  circles  of  inscriptions  in  archaic  lettering-, 
only  portions  of  which  arc  decipherable.  The  outer  line 
reads  as  follows: 

"Aufrichtig  gegen  jedermann 
Vertraulich  gegen  wanich 
Verschwiegen  sein  so  vul  mann  kahn 
Als  wer  ich  bin  der  bin  ich 

Unci  dasz  ist  wahr.     Ao.  1 

True  to  every  man 

Familiar  to  few  (  wen 

To  be  reserved  as  much  as  possible  1  viel), 

Then  it  is  known  that   what    I   am,  that   1  am. 
And  that  is  true. 


The  histiH)  of  this  most  interesting  piece,  the  largest 
that  has  thus  far  come  to  light,  is  as  follows:  It  was  first 
owned  by  Susanna  Berkheimer,  whose  maiden  name  was 
1  tagner,  to  whom  it  was  presented  as  a  bridal  present  by  the 
maker,  whose  name  is  not  known.  After  passing  through 
three  generations  of  the  same  family  it  finally  came  into  pos- 
session of  the  author  and  is  now  in  the  permanent  collection 
of  this  museum. 

A  deep  dish  with  sloping  sides,  measuring  fourteen 
inches  across  the  top,  is  of  a  yellowish  clay,  on  which  has 
been  traced  heavy  lines  of  white  and  green  slips.  A  bird 
stands  beneath  the  protecting  shadow  of  a  bending  tulip,  en- 
circled by  the  ancient  German  proverb  in  slip-traced  letter- 
ing, the  words  being  separated  by  vertical  waving  lines  in 
green : 

"Gliick  und  ungliick 
Ist  aller  morgen  unser  Friihstuk." 

Luck  and  misfortune  (  unluck) 
Are  every  morning  our  breakfast. 


194 


TULIP  WARE 


Belonging  to  about  the  same  period — the  end  of  the 
eighteenth  century — is  a  fine  large  dish  with  slip-traced  de- 
sign of  tulips  and  birds  and  the  following  quotation: 

"Sing,  bet  und  geh  auff  Gottes  vvegen 
Vericht  das  deine  nur  getreu."* 

Sing,  pray  and  go  on  God's  way 
Perform  what  thou  hast  to  do  faithfully. 


80.    SLIP-PAINTED  DISH. 
Made  in  Southeastern  Pennsylvania  about  1796. 
In   the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

The    lettering    and    central    decoration    are    traced    boldly 
in  white  slip,  which  stands  out  in  sharp  contrast  to  the  rich 


*Mr.  F.  D.  Langenheim,  of  Philadelphia,  has  recognized  these  lines  as 
forming  the  first  two  verses  of  the  seventh  stanza  of  an  old  German  hymn, 
beginning  "Wer  nur  den  lieber  Gott  laszt  walten,"  written  in  1640  by 
Georg  Neumark,  court  poet  and  librarian  in  Weimar,  born  1621,  died  1681. 
This  was  his  most  celebrated  hymn,  being  first  printed  in  1657. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


[95 


red  body  of  the  ware.  The  work  is  simple  and  effective  and 
reveals  the  hand  of  an  experienced  slip  painter.  It  is  prob- 
able that  this  and  the  preceding  were  made  by  John  Leidy, 
of  Montgomery  comity.  Pa. 


si.     SLIP-PAINTKIi   DISH. 
Tulip  and    Bird    Decoral 
Southeastern  Pennsylvania,  about 
In  the   Penn  Museum,    Philadelphia. 

Among  the  figure  subjects  used  in  decorating  the  old 
wares,  the  fish  appears  but  rarely.  In  sgraffito  work  it  has 
been  found  occasionally,  but  only  as  one  of  a  number  of 
minor  details.  Of  the  slip-traced  pieces  only  one  example  in 
the  collection  bears  this  device.  Here  the  fish  motive  is  the 
principal  one,  covering  the  entire  center  of  the  large  dish. 
Above  and  below  are  foliated  ornaments  and  on  the  edge  is 


196 


TULIP  WARE 


the  date  1801.  It  is  not  probable  that  any  particular  species 
of  fish  was  in  the  mind  of  the  artist,  as  no  ventral  or  dorsal 
fins  are  shown  and  the  caudal  fin  or  tail  is  divided  into  three 
parts,  the  scales  being  represented  by  parallel,  waving  lines. 
This  dish  was  intended  for  serving  fish  or  meat  at  the  table. 


32     SLIPTRACED   DISH. 

Fish  Decoration. 

Southeastern  Pennsylvania.   1801. 

In   the   Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

The  oldest  known  piece  of  slip  ware  found  in  Penn- 
sylvania is  dated  1733.  This  is  a  barber's  basin,  made  to  fit 
the  neck  of  the  person  shaving  during  the  process  of  lather- 
ing. The  conventionalized  tulip  forms  the  central  embel- 
lishment and  around  the  marly  is  inscribed: 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  197 

"Putz  und  Balvir  micli  Hiebsch  und  fein 
Das  ich  gefal  der  liebste  mein,  [733  " 

Clean  and  shave  me  nice  and  fine 
That  I  may  please  my  beloved  one. 

This  interesting  piece  is  owned  by  Mr.  George  II.   Danner, 
of  Manheim,  Pa. 


BARBER'S   BASIN. 

Southeastern   Pennsylvania,    1-33. 
Owned  by  Mr.  George  II.  Danner. 

A  curious  old  pie  plate  is  particularly  noteworthy  on 
account  of  the  unusual  number  of  human  figures  which  cover 
its  surface.  It  is  probable  that  the  design  was  inspired  by 
that  historical  and  elaborate  entertainment  which  was  given 
to  the  British  General,  Sir  William  Howe,  by  his  officers  on 
the  occasion  of  his  departure  from  Philadelphia  in  1778,  com- 
monly known  as  the  Mischianza.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the 
date  on  the  plate  is  1786,  some  eight  years  later  than  the 
event  depicted,  but  in  those  days  news  traveled  slowly  and 
such  a  period  of  time  might  readily  elapse  before  the  deliber- 
ate country  potter  was  moved  to  use  as  a  subject  for  ceramic 
illustration  the  description  of  that  spectacular  performance 
which  had  penetrated  to  his  inland  community.  As  his  inter- 
course with  the  outside  world  was  exceedingly  limited  and 


198 


TULIP  WARE 


his  knowledge  of  high  life  was  circumscribed,  he  used  the 
females  of  his  own  social  circle,  with  their  tulip-figured  gowns 
and  provincial  headgear,  as  models  for  the  aristocratic  dames 


84.    SGRAFFITO  PIE  PLATE. 

The  Mischianza. 

Southeastern  Pennsylvania,   1786. 

In   the    Pennsylvania   Museum,    Philadelphia. 

of  the  fashionable  city,  while  the  British  officers  were  repre- 
sented in  red  and  green  uniforms,  with  whom  the  fiddler  was 
supposed  to  be  of  equal  rank  and  importance.     It  is  amusing 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


199 


to  see  the  stately  minuet  thus  portrayed  on  a  homely  pie 
dish  and  accompanied  by  an  inscribed  sentiment  which  bears 
as  little  relation  to  the  subject  as  it  dues  to  polite  literature. 
One  of  the  most  pleasing  designs  in  sgraffito  work  is 
found  on  a  pie  plate.  A  man  and  woman  stand  facing  each 
other  with  clasped  hands.     The  attitudes  of  the  figures  and 


00  uo&*?. 


8s.    SGRAFFITO   PIE   PLATE. 

A  Wedding. 

Southeastern    Pennsylvania,    1793. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,   Philadelphia. 


their  gaudily  colored  costumes  are  suggestive  of  a  wedding 
ceremony,  and  this  idea  is  carried  out  by  the  inscription 
which  surrounds  it: 


200 


TULIP  WARE 


'Alle  schone  Junfern  hat  Gott  Erschafen 
Die  sein  vor  die  Hefner  awer  nicht  viir  die  Pfaffen 
21  ten  Ocdober  Anno  1793." 

All  beautiful  maidens  hath  God  created 
They  are  for  the  potter  but  not  for  the  priests. 


86.    SGRAFFITO   DISH. 

Tulip  Decoration. 

Southeastern   Pennsylvania,    1789. 

In   the    Pennsylvania    Museum,    Philadelphia. 

This    piece    was    probably    made    for    a    marriage    gift    to 
some  brother  of  the  craft,  the  date  of  the  happy  event  being 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERM AS S        201 

the  21st  of  October,  1793.  The  delineation  furnishes  us  with 
a  glimpse  of  the  fashions  of  that  period  in  the  German  settle- 
ments of  Pennsylvania.  The  tall  hats  of  the  bride  and  groom; 
the  arrangement  of  the  lady's  hair  in  a  net,  and  her  flowered 


87.    SGRAFFITO    DRINKING    MUG. 

Southeastern   Pennsylvania,   1816. 

In    the    Pennsylvania    Museum,    Philadelphia. 


gown;  the  queue  and  ruffled  shirt  front,  long-tailed  coat  and 
knee  breeches  of  the  groom,  surrounded  by  foliage  and  bios- 


202 


TULIP  WARE 


soms  of  flowers  in  red  and  green,  with  turtle  doves  strutting 
beneath,  present  a  quaint  picture  of  a  century  ago. 

A  large  curved  dish,  dated  1789,  is  somewhat  unusual, 
because  of  the  number  of  tulip  flowers  which  appear  upon  it. 


88.    SGRAFFITO   PLATTER. 
Oval  Form.  1S26. 


From  a  low,  broad  flower-vase  rises  a  stem  which  sends  out 
branchlets  terminating  in  nine  distinct  blossoms.     The  tone 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS         203 

of  the  under  clay,  as  shown  through  the  coffee-tinted  slip 
covering,  is  a  deep,  rich  brown.  No  other  color,  either  of 
clay  or  artificial  pigment,  has  been  used  to  vary  the  mono- 
chrome effect,  excepting  a  circle  of  green  inside  the  waving 
line  of  the  edge  (illustration  86). 

In  striking  contrast  to  this  piece  is  a  large  drinking 
mug  entirely  covered  with  white  or  yellowish  slip,  over  which 
are  scattered  bright  red  sgraffito  tulips.  At  the  back,  be- 
neath the  single  handle,  is  the  date  of  fabrication.  1N10. 


89.    SPHERICAL  TAR. 

Sgraffito   Designs  and   Inscriptions. 

In  the  Pennsylvania  Museum,  Philadelphia. 

Oval  platters  were  seldom  made  by  the  Pennsylvania- 
German  potters.  As  we  have  already  seen,  their  meat  and 
vegetal )le  dishes  were  usually  of  circular  form.  One  excep- 
tion to  the  rule,  however,  has  come  to  light.  This  is  shaped 
somewhat  after  the  pattern  of  the  imported  china  platters, 


204  TULIP  WARE 

which  about  this  time  (1826)  were  finding  their  way  into  the 
German  settlements.  It  is  interesting  to  note  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  decoration  of  this  piece,  which  indicates  that  it 
was  intended  to  be  placed,  when  in  use  on  the  table,  with  the 
narrow  side  towards  the  carver  (illustration  88).  This  inno- 
vation, however,  does  not  appear  to  have  met  with  favor, 
since,  so  far  as  we  know,  other  examples  have  not  been  dis- 
covered. In  the  center  are  scratched  sprays  of  foliage  and 
around  the  margin  is  the  oft-repeated  couplet: 

"Aus  der  Erde  mit  verstandt 
So  macht  der  heffner  aller  hand." 

A  jar  or  flower-vase,  ornamented  with  designs  of  flow- 
ers, vines  and  an  inscription  which  extends  entirely  around 
the  circumference,  is  an  excellent  example  of  sgraffito  work 
(illustration  89).  The  inscribed  couplet  is  the  same  as  that 
which  is  found  on  a  dish  made  by  Jacob  Scholl  in  Mont- 
gomery county  in  1831: 

"Alles  Verfreszen  und  Versoffen  vor  meinem  end 
Macht  ein  richdig  Testament." 

To  consume  everything  in  gluttony  and  intemperance  before  my 

end 
Makes  a  fitting-  testament. 


XIII.      Miscellaneous    Inscriptions 

Found  on 

Pennsylvania-German  Slip  Ware 


CHAPTER  Kill. 
Miscellaneous  [nsi  r: 
Found  on  Pennsylvania-German  Slip  Ware. 

The  following  inscriptions  have  been  found  by  the  writer 
on  unidentified  pieces  of  slip-decorated  and  sgraffito  ware-: 

gut  und  treii 
I  lie  isl  alle  morn 

Ann  i  I  li  imini  1818,  ' 

( ,  id  and  truth 

Are  new  every  morning, 

on  a  slip-traced  dish  of  yellowish  clay,  with  green,  purple  and 

white  designs. 

"Wan  d  I  schon  verbricht 

So  s   Isl  <lu  in  schelten  nicht," 

When  the  dish  breaks 
Thou  should  1  'Id. 

on  a  tulip-decorated  sgraffito  p 

"Der  Hafen  isl  von  ert  gemacht,  1788," 

The  pot  is  made  of  earth, 
on  a  fancy  flowerpot  owned  by  Henry  D.  Paxson.  Esq. 

"Never  give  a  certainty  for  an  uncertainty,"  an  English 

inscription  on  a  sgraffito  plate. 

"Aus  der  Erde  mit  verstant 
So  macht  der  heffner  aller-hand,  18^6." 

Out  of  earth  with  understanding 
The  potter  makes  everything, 

on  a  sgraffito  plate  decorated  with  tulips. 

207 


208  TULIP  WARE 

"Click,  glas  und  Erde 
Wie  bald  bricht  die  werde 
Aus  der  Erd  mid  verstand 
Magt  der  Hoefner  aller  Hand,  1798." 

Luck,  glass  and  earth 
How  soon  they  are  broken ; 
Out  of  earth  with  understanding 
Makes  the  potter  everything. 

(The  old  German  Sprichwort  runs  "Gliick  und  Glas  wie 
bald  bricht  das"). 

"Die  (sch)  schisel  ist  von  erd  und  don 
Und  die  mensch  bist  auch  davon,  Anno  1800," 

This  dish  is  of  earth  and  clay  (thon) 
And  the  men  are  also  thereof, 

on  a  slip-decorated  dish. 

"Deisa  Schiissel  ist  von  Orda  gamacht 
Von  sie  Zerbricht  der  Heffner  lacht,  1810," 

This  dish  is  made  of  earth 
When  it  breaks  the  potter  laughs, 

on  a  dish  decorated  with  natural  leaf  impressions.  This  was 
a  favorite  quotation  with  the  old  Pennsylvania-German  pot- 
ters. It  originated  in  Germany,  where  it  is  frequently  found 
on  old  earthen  vegetable  dishes  (Gemuscschusseln)  and  other 
articles.  An  example  of  the  former,  belonging  to  the  begin- 
ning of  the  nineteenth  century,  in  possession  of  a  Baden  col- 
lector, bears  the  couplet  in  this  form: 

"Diese  Piatt  aus  Erd  gemacht, 
Wenn  sie  ferbricht  der  Hafner  lacht." 

Another  Pennsylvania  German  variation  is  as  follows: 

"Die  Schiissel  ist  von  Erd  gemacht 
Wann  sie  verbricht  der  Haffner  lacht 
Darum  nehmt  sie  in  Acht." 

The  dish  is  made  of  earth 
When  it  breaks  the  potter  laughs, 
Therefore  take  care  of  it  ( in  acht  neincn), 
on  a  sgraffito  piece. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS         209 

"Junferlein  und  rosen  bleder 
Vergehen  wie  das  regen  weder, 

1802  den  22  Mey 
I  reschrieben  von  P  V  M," 

Maidens  and  rose  leaves  1  Blatter) 
Pass  away  like  rainy  weather  (Wetter) 
[8  12  the  22d  of  May, 
Written  by  P.  V.  M., 

on  a  sgraffito  dish  with  red  incised  designs  on  a  white  slip 

ground.     The  name  of  the  maker,  wliose  initials  are  signed, 

has  nut  been  identified. 

"Alle  Jungfrauen  auf  der  erden 
Wolten  gem  zu  weiber  werden," 

All  the  young  women  on  the  earth 
Would  willingly  become  wives, 

on  a  sgraffito  plate. 

"In  der  Schissel  stedt  ein  stern 
l*nd  die  medger  haben  die  buben  gern,  1.^23. 

II.  E.  IS.  T.," 
In  the  dish  stands  a  star 
And  the  girls  would  willingly  have  the  l>  \  s, 

en  a  sgraffito  plate  with  large  star  in  center.  This  same  sen- 
timent is  also  found  on  a  slip-traced  dish  with  the  follo\viii» 
variation  in  the  second  line: 

"Die  Medger  hen  die  buben  gern." 
"Lustich  wer  noch  ledig  ist, t'raurich  wer  fersprucha  est," 
Happy  who  is  single  yet,  sad  who  is  engaged, 
on  a  sgraffito  pie  plate,  with  conventional  fuchsia  designs. 

"Kan  mich  kein  Pilaster  heilen 
So  wolst  du  mit  mir  eilen 

Aus  dieser  Jammer  welt 
Ins  shone  Himmels  Zelt." 

If  no  plaster  can  cure  me 

Wouldst  thou  hie  with  me 

Out  of  this  world  of  woe 

Into  the  beautiful  vault  of  Heaven? 

Found  on  a  sgraffito  pie  plate  of  the  eighteenth  century. 


210  TULIP  WARE 

"Ich  hav  geward  schon  ein  mangen  dag 
Und  mich  doch  kein  bub  nicht  haben  mag." 

I  have  waited  already  many  a  day  (tag) 
And  yet  no  fellow  wants  to  have  me. 

"Lieben  und  Geliebt  zu  werden 
,     1st  die  Groste  Freud  auf  Erden 

Und  so  Weider  Im  Jahr  1831." 

To  love  and  be  loved 

Is  the  greatest  joy  on  earth. 

And  so  forth,  in  the  year  183 1. 

"Es  neckt  mich  ietzt  der  wohllust  art 
Ich  hab  schohn  lang  auf  dich  gewart." 

I  feel  now  in  a  loving  way, 

I  have  waited  for  you  a  long  while. 

"Fische  vogel  und  Fornellen 
Essen  gern  die  Haffner  gsellen,  March  20,  1810," 

Fish,  fowl  and  trout  (forellen  ) 
The  journeymen  potters  enjoy, 

on  a  dish  decorated  with  natural  leaf  impressions.  A  some- 
what similar  sentiment  occurs  on  a  Bavarian  earthenware 
dish  of  about  1800,  in  the  possession  of  a  collector  in  Baden: 

"Ich  esse  gerne  Fische  und  mein  Frau  Vogel." 
I  enjoy  fish  and  my  wife  fowl. 

"In  der  mid  state  ein  Stern 
Was  ich  gleich  das  es  ich  gern,  1826." 

In  the  middle  stands  a  star, 

What  I  like  I  eat  willingly  (or  enjoy). 

"Essen  ist  vor  leib  und  leben 
Trincken  ist  audi  gut  darneben,  1793," 

Eating  is  for  existence  and  life, 
Drinking  is  also  good  besides, 

on  a  sgraffito  tumbler  or  drinking  cup,  in  the  collection  of  the 

Bucks  County  Historical  Society. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS         211 

"Der  broden  steht  im  offenloch 
Frau  geh  bin  unci  boll  in  doch,  177''. 

The  steam  stands  in  the  even  mouth 
\\  1  man  go  and  get  it  out, 

on  a  slip-painted  meat  dish,  sixteen  inches  in  diameter,  with 

central  figure  of  a  running  ostrich  or  turkey. 

"  I'h  bin  ein  vogel  aller  ding 
I  )asz  brod  ich  ess  dasz  lits  ich  sing,  1792," 

I  am  a  bird,  of  course, 

Whose  bread  I  eat  his  song  (lied)  I  sing, 

on  a  slip-traced  dish,  with  figure  of  bird  in  center.     Tins  is  an 

old  German  saying,  which  expresses  the  idea  of  loyalty  to  a 

benefactor. 

"Es  sein  kein  vogel,  es  sind  kein  fisch 
Es  weis  ken  gucku  was  es  ist 
Eine  blumme  Zuschreiben 
1st  ftir  die  zeit  zu  verdreiben,  1793," 

There  are  no  birds,  there  are  no  fish. 

No  cuckoo  knows  what  it  is. 

To  dedicate  a  flower 

[s  t<>  pass  away  the  time, 
on  a  sgraffito  pie  plate,  with  figures  of  fuchsias.     The  exact 
meaning  of  this  inscription  is  not  apparent. 

"Der  Stern  der  auf  der  Bottel  blickt 
Der  hat  schon  mannichem  sein  Glick  verstickt,  1846," 

The  star  that  looks  down  on  the  flask 
Has  destroyed  the  luck  of  many. 

on  a  sgraffito  plate,  with  star  in  center.     This  is  one  of  the 

later  productions  of  the  Pennsylvania-German  potteries. 

"Ech  weitig  nit  indar  welt 
Mein  hart  dar  ist  gar  din  gestelp,  179 1 ." 

By  everything  in  the  world  I  know  not  why 
My  beard  has  grown  so  thin  (diinn  ), 

on  a  sgraffito  barber's  basin,  with  conventional  flower  in  the 

center. 


212  TULIP  WARE 

Barbers'  basins  were  in  general  use  in  olden  times.  Ex- 
amples of  typical  form,  in  porcelain,  have  been  brought  from 
China;  in  Italy  they  were  made  in  majolica;  Spain  furnishes 
the  same  in  Mambrino's  Helmet  (Don  Quixote);  several  of 
identical  shape,  in  red  earthenware,  decorated,  inscribed  and 
dated,  have  been  discovered  among  the  descendants  of  the 
Pennsylvania-German  potters,  who  brought  their  art  from 
Germany.  A  white  faience  jug  of  German  origin,  owned  by 
a  collector  in  Baden,  bears  on  its  front  a  colored  design  repre- 
senting a  barber  shop.  A  customer  is  seated  on  a  stool  hold- 
ing a  shaving  basin  to  his  throat,  while  a  knight  of  the  razor 
stands  beside  him  applying  the  lather.  Above  the  picture  is 
the  inscription  in  black  lettering: 

'Andreas  Dietrich 
Ana  Maria  Dietrichin 

Gott  ist  der  Arzt,  und  ich  sein  Knecht 
Wenn  er  mir  hilft  so  heil  ich  recht.     1798." 

God  is  the  physician,  and  I  his  servant 
When  he  helps  me  I  heal  right. 

The  barber  in  those  days  was  the  doctor  or  chirurgeon, 
and  was  always  ready  to  shave,  bleed  or  leech  his  patients. 
The  ceramic  illustration  described  is  of  interest  in  showing 
the  manner  of  using  this  ancient  utensil. 


XIV.      Slip-Decoration  as  Practised    bv 
American  Potters 

In   Philadelphia — Chester  County,  Pennsylvania — 
Connecticut — Morgantown,   W.  Va. 


[APTER  XIV. 
Slip-Decoration  as  Practised  by  American  Potters. 

We  have  already  seen  that  in  the  German  settlemenl 
eastern    Pennsylvania  there  were  a  number  of   English   or 
American  potter-  who  learned  the  art  of  rom 

their  German  neighbors,  bul  how  far  the  influence  of  the  old 
German  art  extended  to  other  sections  of  the  country,  where 
slip  decoration  was  practised  to  a  limited  exti  cult 

to  determine.     It  is  true  that  some  of  the  in  Philadel- 

phia and  other  places  began  ing  red  earthenware  with 

rude  slip  designs  as  early  as  the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  litis  style  of  ornamentation,  however,  was  confined 
almost  entirely  to  the  use  of  yellow  slip  tracings  in  waving 
or  zigzag  lines  on  pie  plates  and  meat  platters.  Thomas 
Haig,  of  Philadelphia,  made  such  ware  about  1812,  and  his 
successors  continued  its  production  down  to  the  closing  of 
the  factory  a  few  years  ago.  Throughout  the  country  dis- 
tricts of  certain  part.-  of  Pennsylvania  it  is  probable  that  the 
art  has  survived  until  the  present  day,  and  at  the  pottery  of 
John  Spiegel,  in  Philadelphia,  slip-decorated  pie  plates  of  tin- 
old  pattern  are  yet  being  made. 

About  1806  Thomas  Vickers  established  a  pottery  in 
West  Whiteland  township,  Chester  county,  Pa.,  and  pro- 
duced large  quantities  of  the  commercial  slip  ware,  particu- 
larly pie  plates,  platters  and  crocks  of  various  kinds.  Mrs. 
Sara  Louisa  Oberholtzer.  of  Philadelphia,  a  descendant,  has 
in  her  possession  a  number  of  old  potter's  tools  and  pie 
molds  from  the  Vickers  pottery,   some  of  the  latter  being 

215 


216  TULIP  WARE 

marked  with  the  initials  T.  V.  and  J.  V.  (Thomas  Vickers  and 
John  Vickers)  and  bearing  dates  from  1806  to  1823.  A  large 
pottery  jar  in  the  collection  of  the  Pennsylvania  Museum, 
made  at  this  establishment,  is  covered  with  a  variegated 
glaze,  and  bears  the  incised  inscription  "Abigail  Stromberg, 
West  Chester,  Chester  county,  1st  Mo.  7th,  1822."  The  re- 
cipient, whose  name  appears  on  the  piece,  was  the  wife  of 
Olaf  Stromberg,  a  prominent  resident  of  West  Chester,  at 
that  date.  Other  interesting  pieces  of  sgraffito  or  scratched 
pottery  from  the  same  establishment  are  owned  by  Miss 
Bogle,  of  West  Chester.  One  is  a  brown-glazed  flowerpot, 
with  double  crimped  pie-crust  edge  and  the  date  "1822"  and 
"Uwchlan  township"  inscribed  around  the  body.  It  was  in 
this  year  that  the  pottery  was  moved  to  the  latter  township, 
to  the  village  of  Lionville.  where  slip-decorated  ware  con- 
tinued to  be  made  by  the  Vickers  family  until  about  1865, 
after  which  date  the  pottery  remained  in  other  hands  until  a 
few  years  ago. 

Another  example  of  the  Vickers'  ware,  probably  of 
about  1822,  in  the  possession  of  Miss  Bogle,  is  a  similar 
flowerpot,  on  which  occurs  the  following  incised  inscription: 

"Is  this  a  christian  world? 
Are  we  a  human  race? 
And  can  man  from  his  brother's  soul 
God*s  impress  dare  efface?" 

On  another  part  of  the  vase  is  inscribed  "John  Vickers  & 
Son,  Lionville,  Chester  county,  Pa." 

Mrs.  Oberholtzer  informs  me  that  some  of  the  workmen 
from  the  Nase  pottery  in  Montgomery  county  were  at  one 
time  employed  at  the  Vickers  pottery.  One  of  them  made 
toys  and  ornamental  figures  in  the  forms  of  animals  and 
birds. 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS 


21/ 


At  a  recent  auction  sale  in  West  Chester,  Pa.,  one  of 
the  pieces  sold  was  an  old  pie  plate  with  the  inscription 
"Cherry  Pic,"  in  yellow  slip. 

In  Connecticut  slip-decorated  earthenware  was  made 
seventy  or  more  years  ago.  The  ornamentation  usually  con- 
sisted of  the  initials  or  Christian  names  of  the  recipients  and 
occasionally  dates.  The  late  Mr.  A.  <  \.  Richmond,  of  Cana- 
joharie,  X.  V..  had  in  his  possession  an  ordinary  red-glazed 


SLIP-DECORATED    PIE    PLATE 
With   Name  of  Recipient. 
Made  in  Connecticut,  c.   1830. 

pie  plate,  which  bore  in  yellow  slip  script,  extending  well 
over  the  surface,  the  name  "Maria."  and  Mrs.  Henderson,  of 
Herkimer,  N.  Y.,  is  the  owner  of  two  similar  pieces,  one 
bearing  the  words  "For  Sally"  and  the  other  "For  Julia,"  in 
greenish-yellow  slip.  Mr.  H.  W.  Erving,  of  Hartford,  Conn., 
is  the  possessor  of  several  of  these  plates,  one  inscribed  in 
the  center  with  the  initials  "C.  B."  and  the  other  with  the 


218  "  TULIP  WARE 

date  "1832."  An  oval  platter  in  the  Pennsylvania  Museum  is 
embellished  in  green  slip,  with  the  names  "George  and  Lucy" 
in  large  script  lettering,  which  occupies  the  entire  center  of 
the  dish,  in  three  lines.  The  production  of  these  name  plates 
appears  to  have  been  confined  to  some  of  the  small  potteries 
of  Connecticut  and  New  York,  and  was  probably  a  survival 
of  the  art  practised  by  the  old  English  potters. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  the  slip-decorated  pottery  of 
other  sections  was  of  the  simplest  character  and  much  less 
elaborate  and  pretentious  than  that  produced  in  the  Penn- 
sylvania-German district. 

Slip-decoration  was  practised  at  Morgantown,  W.  Va., 
in  the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  as  discovered  by 
Dr.  Walter  Hough,  of  the  United  States  National  Museum. 
A  pottery  was  started  there  previous  to  1785  by  one  Foulke, 
who,  about  1800,  was  succeeded  by  John  W.  Thompson,  his 
apprentice.  Among  the  discoveries  of  Dr.  Hough  is  a  most 
interesting  series  of  potter's  tools,  among  which  are  a  number 
of  primitive,  single-quill  slip  cups  or  bottles  for  slip-painting. 
While  these  resemble  in  general  form  the  quill  boxes  used  in 
eastern  Pennsylvania,  they  differ  in  having  a  smaller  opening 
at  the  top  for  pouring  in  the  liquid  slip.  Dr.  Hough  states 
that  "the  upper  side  of  the  vessel  has  an  orifice,  to  which  was 
fitted  a  plug  pierced  with  a  small  hole,  and  the  spout  is  sup- 
plied with  a  quill.  The  vessel  is  shaped  for  grasping  in  the 
hand.  Being  filled  with  clay  slip  about  the  consistence  of 
thick  cream,  the  stopper  was  inserted  and  the  flow  of  the 
slip  regulated  by  the  opening  and  closing  of  the  orifice  by  the 
thumb.  By  this  means  designs  were  applied  to  pottery,  often 
complicated,  and  producing  pleasing  effects.'"-1 

This  was  the  English  and  French  method  of  using  the  slip 


*See  Annual  Report  of  the  U.   S.   National  Museum  for  1899,  pages 
511-521. 


SLIP  CUPS  USED    l\    DECORATING  POTTERY. 
From   Morgantown,  W.   \'a.,   about   1S00. 
In    i! 


220 


TULIP  WARE 


cup  or  pipette,  and  it  is  probable  that  Foulke  had  learned  his 
trade  in  England,  or  at  least  had  acquired  the  process  from 
an  English  potter. 

Among  the  pieces  of  pottery  found  at  Morgantown  are 
two  fine  examples  which  were  evidently  decorated  in  this 
manner.  One  is  a  brown  preserve  jar,  about  ten  inches  in 
height,  covered  outside  and  inside  with  a  transparent  lead 


92.    SLIP-DECORATED   JARS. 

Morgantown,  W.  Va.,  c.  1800. 
In  the  Smithsonian   Institution. 


glaze  speckled  with  minute  dark  brown  spots.  Around  the 
side  are  conventional  tulips  in  white,  green  and  brown.  The 
other  is  a  churn-shaped  vessel  in  the  form  of  a  truncated  cone, 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS         221 

nearly  ten  inches  high,  covered  with  a  semi-transparent 
greenish-yellow  glaze  and  decorated  with  a  floral  design, 
possibly  intended  for  the  tulip,  in  black. 

Among  the  old  potter's  tools  discovered  by  Dr.  Hough 
is  a  series  of  wooden  "ribs"  of  various  shapes,  including  sev- 
eral which  are  notched  on  one  side  in  different  designs,  pre- 
sumably for  indenting  and  shaping  the  rims  of  hollow  vessels 


93.    "RIBS"   OR   SMOOTHERS. 

Morgantown,  W.  Va.,  c.  1800. 

In  the  Smithsonian  Institution. 

which  were  thrown  on  the  wheel.  The  collection  also  in- 
cludes a  large  variety  of  clay  hand  stamps  for  applying  relief 
designs  to  the  surface  of  the  ware,  button  molds,  pipe  molds 
and  a  number  of  most  interesting  and  unusual  roulette  wheels 
or  "coggles" — cylinders  of  baked  clay  with  engraved  designs 


222  TULIP  WARE 

on  the  surface,  mounted  in  rude  wooden  handles,  for  run- 
ning ornamental  relief  or  incised  bands  around  jars  and 
crocks  when  in  the  moist  clav  state.     These  are  much  more 


94-    "COGGLES"  OR  DECORATING  WHEELS. 

Morgantown,  W.  \*a.,  c.  1800. 

In  the  Smithsonian   Institution. 

elaborate  than   the   simple   decorating'  wheels   used  by   the 
Pennsylvania  Germans  for  notching  or  indenting  the  edges 


OF  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  GERMANS  223 

of  pie  plates,  which  were  merely  cut  across  the  periphery  in 
a  series  of  straight  or  oblique  lines.  A  fine  example  of  relief 
decoration  produced  by  means  of  one  of  the  hand  stamps  or 
mi  ilds  is  an  unglazed  water  pitcher  bearing  on  one  side  the 
molded  device  of  a  house,  surrounded  by  trees. 

Slip-decoration  in  its  primitive  Stages  is  now  a  lost  art 
in  the  United  States.  It  nourished,  principally  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, for  nearly  a  century  and  a  half.  Its  decadence  com- 
menced with  the  advent  1  if  pewter,  and  when  the  cheaper 
grades  of  white  crockery  began  to  be  introduced  the  products 
of  the  German  potteries  ceased  to  he  in  demand. 

Slip-decoration  was  the  forerunner  of  the  modern  art  of 
painting  on  the  unbaked  ware  with  colored  clays,  as  exempli- 
fied in  the  Rookwood  pottery  of  the  present  day.  Its  highest 
artistic  development  is  found  in  the  pate-sur-pate  process,  as 
practised  by  Mr.  M.  L.  Solon  at  the  Minton  factory  in  Eng- 
land, who  is  recognized  to-day  as  the  greatest  exponent  of 
this  beautiful  art. 


INDEX 

1'Ai.K 

Amifins  Museum   37,  38 

Barber's    Basins    150.  196,  i>i~.  212 

Berkheimer,  Susanna 193 

Bloomfield  Mm. re  Collection   34.35 

Buck,  William  J in 

Bucks  County  I  [istorical  Society  100.  154.  210 

ificates  of  Birth,  Ma:  I  Death 93 

87 

I        necticut  Slip  Ware   J17 

Cooper,  William  A 122 

Cope.   Michael   

Copper  Oxide  in  1  Haze 3°.  40 

Creussen,   Bavaria,  Slip  Ware 34-35 

Dahlia    136 

Danner,  George  II 39.  "o,  in.  197 

Dates   on    Slip    Wan     100 

Davis.  Gen.  W.  W.  II "7 

1  )eci  .rative  Subjects: 

Animals     's7.  88 

Cock  87 

Deer    87-  131,  '3-\  M7 

Dog   s7.  131.  1 3-' 

Fish    5 

Hen    87 

Horse     87,  173 

Lion    87.  '77 

Rabbit    87,  [39 

Serpent    -. 1 74 

Birds     84  et  scq. 

Dove    84.  113,  172,  173 

Duck    62,  86,  [39 

EaSle    73,  84,  1 56,  165 

225 


226 


1   N  1)  E  X 


Decorative  Subjects — Birds:  pack 

Oriole    84 

Parrot    154 

Peacock   84-86,  115-117 

Pelican    86 

Stork   174 

Swan    86,  140 

Flowers    81  ct  scq. 

Dahlia    136 

Forget-me-not    83,160 

Fuchsia    81,  82 

Lily  of  the  Valley 36,  84 

Peony     l3b 

Tulip    40,  82,  83 

"       (England)     32-34 

(France)     34.37 

••       (Germany  )     3l,33,& 

(Holland) 82 

(Pennsylvania  Germans  Retain  Persian  Name) 83 

'       (Persia)    32-34-  36,  82,  83 

"       (Turkey)     8~' 

(Vienna)     -34 

Human  Figures  88>  ^ 

Deer    87,131,^,147 

Deetz,  Charles  H 4'  M2 

Thomas   B 

Dickenshied,  Mrs.  Elvina  S l2' 

Diffenderffer.  Frank  Ried 4-  15 

Dog    87.i3i.i32 

Dove    84.  113.  172.  173 

Draugh,    Rudolph    I4 

Drochsel,  Peter   '-* 

Duck    62,  8b.  1 3., 

Durham   Iron   Furnace   93 

Eagle 73.  84.  156,  165 

Englefontaine    38 

Entoine    38 

Ephrata  Community 26 

E.   R 185 

Ervihg,  H.  W I'm.  217 

Field  Columbian  Museum   117 


I  N  D  K  X 


-*-7 


„.     .  PACE 

Flsh    88,  196 

Fischer,   H.  L 

Forget  me  nol    

Friend,    K'i         II         1  it- s; , 

Fuchsia   g,  g2 

Funck,  Jacob   $-,   ,si 

nar,   facob 

g  m ;;;;;;;  l8s 

1  r<  '      "I.   (   .111  rail    [85 

Marsia    1S5 

Gesner,  Konrad  von  82 

'       '       36,  40,  49.  50,  56 

Gn  iff,   Maria I_>; 


Haldeman,  Prof.  Samuel  Stehman ig 

Halsey.  R     I     II 88 

Harbaugh,  Rev.  Henry  16 

Haling,    A.    B 4.  45.  id 

Harris.   Mrs.   Sarah   B [16,117 

Heibner,  George  '4 

Helbard,   Maria   117,  185 

Hen     87 

Hodgkin,  John  Eliot  and  Edith .$-• 

Hoffman,  Dr.  William  J [9,  22 

Home,  A.  R _'.S 

Horse  87,  173 

Hough,   Dr.   Walter   218,221 

Huster, 10; 


Illuminative  Writing    85,  93,  94 

Inscriptions  on    Pottery   So.  1''  seq.,  207  et  scq. 

11    Houses   95,96 

Iron    Furnaces    qi 

Stove    Plates    ,. 

Jackson,  Gen.  Andrew   if,-.  1  -^  [74 

Jacquemart,  Albert  33 

Jones,   Edward   Russell    '. 67 

Jungin,  Mathalena   II4  u-_  1T- 


I  N  D  E  X 


PAGE 


Kilns    59,  60 

Kuhns,   Oscar    11,  23,  26,  95 


Langenheim,  F.  D 194 

Lead    Glaze    36,  40,  49.  50,  56,  57 

Leaf  Impressions 70-72 

Leidy,  Jacob 123 

Lightcap,  Mollie  186,  187 

Lily  of  the  Valley    36,84 

Lion     87,  177 

Low,  John  G 70 

Manganese  in  Glaze  51,  149 

Mercer,  Henry  C 86.  93,  94.  101,  155 

Mischianza  shown  on  Plate  197,  198 

Monday.  John   184 

Moravians  107 

Morgantown.   W.    Va 218-222 

Morris,  John  T 3 

Morse.   Prof.   Edward   S 108 

Molded   Ware    74 


Nadler,  Karl  G 21 

Naiis.   Johannes    14 

Neumark,  Georg 194 

New  York  Slip  Ware  218 

Nockamixon   Swamp  105 

Nottingham  Art  Museum   33 

Oberholtzer,  Sara  Louisa   215,  216 

Oriole  84 

Paper  Patterns  Transferred  to  Pottery  72 

Paquot.   M.   Ris    37 

Parrot 1 54 

Pate-sur-Pate 223 

Paxson,  Henry  D 75,  177,  178,  207 

Peacock  84-86,  115-117 

Pelican   : 86 

Pennypacker,  Hon.  Samuel  W 4,  162 


I   N  D  EX  _'_'i) 

I'A,.I 

Peony 136 

Philadelphia  Slip  Ware   215 

I  mop  of  Light   1 1 1 1  r - c- 135 

Pies  101.  102 

Platter    202 

Potters   (Slip  Ware)    Pennsylvania-German: 

Albert,   Henry   107 

Bartleman,  107 

Bergey,   Benjamin   55.87,88,   107.   172-175 

v.   John    106 

ig,      107 

Diehl,  George  106,   171) 

I  )rach,  Rudolf  14,  io<>,  117.  1 18 

Graber, 107 

Greaser,    Andrew    105 

Groff,  Joseph 123 

Haring,   David   .  .    105,  [68  171 

Jared  R 105,  171,  172 

John   n 

Harwick,  Joseph    105 

Headman,  Andrew  86,  106,  153,  154 

1  lharles  106,  154.  155 

John  100,  153 

Peter  106,  153 

H.  E.  IS.  T 209 

Herstine,  Cornelius  105,  100 

Daniel   106 

I  lavid    105,    106 

J  ihn,  Sr 105 

Jr 105 

Peter  105 

Solomon    106 

Hildebrand.   Friedrich   88,  107.   176  179 

1  [iibener,  ( leorg  14,  86,  107.  1 12  et  seq.,  184,  185 

I-  T 75,   106 

Kintner,  Charles  105 

Hugh  105 

Jacob   105,   106 

Kline,  Philip   106,  155-157 

Klinker,  Christian   55,   106,  in 

Leidy.  John  58,  107,  118  et  seq.,  195 

Michel,   William    106 

Miller,  Christian  106 


230  INDEX 

> 
Potters  (Slip  Ware)  Pennsylvania-German  :  page 

Mondeau,  David  106 

Edwin    106 

John 105,  106 

Mi  lore  &  Kinsey 107 

Richard    106 

Mover.  Mathias   106 

Mumbauer,  Conrad   106 

Nase,  John  55,  58,  107,  147  e t  seq. 

Neesz,  Johannes  14,  38,  107,  136  et  seq. 

Neisser,   Jacob    106 

Nizer,   Jacob    , 106 

P.  V.  M 209 

Ranninger,  Conrad  K 73.   T°7 

Rieley,  John  G 105 

Rode,  107 

Roudebuth,  Henry  ! 107,  161,  162 

Scheetz,  Jacob  105 

Philip    105 

Scholl,  Jacob 14,  83.  107,  157  e t  seq.,  203 

Michael   M-  107.  157  et  seq. 

Schrumm,  Franz 106 

Sigafoos,  Jacob  l°5 

Singer,  Milton 106 

Simon  106 

Spinner,  David 81,  89.  106.  127  et  scq.,  137,  138 

Stackhouse,  William   106 

Stier,  Gilbert  106 

Jacob i°6 

Philip    106 

William    106 

Stofflet,  Heinrich   107,  162 

Stout,  Abraham  106,  1  n 

"      Isaac 106,  in 

Taney,  Jacob  75,  105 

"       J.  R 106 

Toomey,  Helfrich  IQ6 

Troxel,  Samuel  14.  107,  163  et  seq. 

Potters  (Slip  Ware)  : 

Cope. i°7 

Foulke,  218 

Haig.  Thomas   215 

Horn.  Samuel   I07 


1  X  ]  >  E  X  j  ^  1 

Potters     Slip  Ware)  :  ,.u  ,B 

Johnson,  Joseph    

McCammon,  Samuel   io6 

McEntee,  John   [0= 

Michael    105 

Patrick I0S 

Mills,  Jacob   i0', 

Smith,  Joseph  106,  108  1 

1  homas  106,  108  et  seq. 

William   

Spiegel,  John   _>, 5 

Thompson,  John  W _•  i,x 

Vickers,  John   216 

Thomas  213,  216 

Watson, ,06i  ,53 

Weaver,  Abraham   105.   175,   176 

Potter's  Tools  4g  et  seq 

Potts,  John  0, 

Processes  of  Manufacture ^,./  $gq 


Quill  Boxes ,8-54,  ?''■ 


57,  219 


Rabbit  87    1  va 

Raderin,  Cadarina   1  u,  1 1  ; 

Ratzel,  M.   I .'  ,5s 

Ri     'i.    Elizabeth    

Richline,  John  [61 

Richmond,  A.  G 217 

Riehl,  84 

Rolfe,  Prof.  Alfred  G ,o7 

Roofing    Hies   I()o    107 

Rookw 1  Pottery 223 

Rutter,  Thomas  04    n= 

Sachse,  Julius  F 4 

Samplers  03,  94 

Serpent ,74 

Sevres    Museum    37 

Singmaster,    Elizabeth    123 

Sgraffito  Ware   ,,,  32,  37-39,  41,  57,  58 

Shaddinger,    Henry    F ^6 

Sholl,  Frederick  14 


232  INDEX 

PAGE 

Slip  Cups 48-54.  56,  57,  219 

Slip-Decoration 31.  53,  56,  57 

(England)   32,  34,  39,  41,  218 

(France)   32,  36-39,  218 

(Germany)    32,  34-36,  39 

(Switzerland  )    32,  36,  153 

Slip  Ware 31  ct  seq.,  40,  55 

"     (  Germany  )   34-36 

"    varieties  of 67  et  seq. 

Smithsonian  Institution 85,  86,  220-222 

Solliday,   Daniel    155 

Solon,  M.  L 32,  153,  223 

Spinner,  Gen.  F.  E 127 

"      Ulrich   127 

Sterner,  Sally 161 

Stiegel,  Baron  William  Henry 93 

Stork    174 

Stove  Plates  93"95 

Stowe,  Harriet  Beecher  102 

Stmmberg,  Abigail    216 

Olaf 216 

Swan  86,  140 

Swartzlander,  Miss  Laura  112 

Terry,  James 108,  109 

Tiles   100,  107 

Tobacco  Pipes  100 

Toft,  Ralph  and  Thomas 3- 

Tombstones    94 

Traugh,   Rudolph    1 18 

Tulip 32-34.  36,  2,7,  40,  82,  83 

U.  S.  National  Museum  218 

Utensils  made  by  Pennsylvania  Germans: 

Apple  Butter  Crocks   99,i68 

Coffee  Pots 99 

Cream  Pitchers  99 

Flower  Vases    I0° 

Pots   99 

Ink  Stands  1 00 

Jar.   99 

Jugs    °9 


INDEX  233 

Utensils  made  by  Pennsylvania  Germans  :  i.Agk 

Meat   Dishes   99 

Mugs 99 

I  'ie    Plates    100,  IOI 

99 

Puzzle   Mug<   100 

Shaving  Basins  100.  150,  196,   ni~.  .'u 

Cups    100 

Sugar  Bowls   99 

I  ea  ( lanisters  100,  109 

Toys  100 

Vegetable  I  )ishes   99 

Verdigris  111  1  ilaze  51 

Warwick  Iron   Furnace   93 

hington,  Gen.  George  140  .-(  s<\j. 

Weaver.   Mary  Ann    175 

Samuel  106 

Wedding  Scene  1  'ii   Plate   

Williams.  .1.  S 108 

Wollenweber,  L  A 22 


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